mega chile

[Pref. mega-, and Gr. cheilos = a lip.] Entom.: Leaf-cutters; a genus of Hymenoptera, tribe Aculeata, family Apiarie. Mega chile centun cularis , the commonest known species, is very widely distributed, being spread over nearly the whole of the northern hemisphere. Their popular name has reference to their habit of cutting portions of the leaves of trees and plants, with which they line their nests. These are formed either in the ground or in decaying trees; and the portions of the leaves are arranged to separate the different cells, which roughly resemble so many thimbles placed one within the other.