The month is armed with a very powerful pair of mandibles, and the tail with a sting even larger and more venomous than that of the hornet.

These carpenter bees are exceedingly destructive, as they bore holes in beams and posts, in which they lay their eggs, the larvae of which when hatched greedily feed upon the timber.
The honey bees are of four very distinct varieties, each of which forms its nest on a different principle.

The largest and most extensive honey-maker is the "bambera".

This is nearly as large as a hornet, and it forms its nest upon the bough of a tree, from which it lines like a Cheshire cheese, being about the same thickness, but five or six inches greater in diameter.

The honey of this bee is not so much esteemed as that from the smaller varieties, as the flavor partakes too strongly of the particular flower which the bee has frequented; thus in different seasons the honey varies in flavor, and is sometimes so highly aperient that it must be used with much caution.