Catastrophe of the Bee
During one of the brief spells of sudden warmth in the midst of the long frost, the bees, whose hives were in a suntrap, came out in numbers and died from the change that followed ; but within a short space no trace of the catastrophe was left. Every bee was devoured by the tits. It is probably this not infrequent presence of dead bees on the alighting board that has taught the tits the diabolic device of tapping the boards of the hive in order to induce guardian bees to emerge. Sudden spells of warmth are the great danger of most hibernators ; but apart from these it is, I think, the general experience that cold winters are more favourable to most lurking insects than warm. The sleep is deeper, and the temptation to come out prematurely is less. What a rush there will be, when our spring tyranny is overpast, of bud and flower as well as insect!
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