I wonder if you know that the smallest insects you see about you have
tools given them to do their work with. There is a little fly called
a saw-fly, because it has a saw to work with. It is really a very much
nicer saw than you could make, if you were ever so old.
The fly uses it to make places where the eggs will be safe. What is more
strange, it has a sort of homemade glue which fastens them where they
are laid.
Some insects have cutting instruments that work just as your scissors
do. The poppy-bee is one of them, whose work is wonderful. This bee has
a boring tool, too. Its nest is usually made in old wood. This borer
cleans out the nest ready for use. When all is ready the insect cuts out
pieces of leaves to line the nest and to make the cells. These linings
are out in the shape of the cells. You, would be surprised to see the
care taken to have every piece of just the right size, so that it will
fit. When they are fitted, the pieces are nicely fastened together and
put into the nest.