BEE-HUNTING. 



41 



BEE-HUNTING. 



white paint in a little vial, and a pencil- 

 brush, mark one of them on tlie back.* This 

 is quite a help where you have two or more 

 lines working from the same bait. When a 

 bee comes back, you will recognize it by the 

 peculiar inquiring hum, like robbers in front 

 of a hive where they have once had a taste 

 of spoils. If the tree is near by, each one 

 will bring others along in its wake, and soon 

 your box will be humming with a throng, so 

 eager that a further filling of the feeder 

 from the bottle will be needed. As soon as 

 you are pretty well satisfied in which direc- 

 tion they are located, you can close the 

 glass slide and move along on the line, 

 nearer the woods. Open the box, and you 

 will soon have them just as busy again ; 

 mark the line and move again, and you 

 will very soon follow them to their home. 

 To aid you in deciding just where they 

 are, you can move off to one side and start 

 a cross-line. t Of course the tree will be 

 found just where these lines meet; when 

 you get where you think they should be, 

 examine the trees carefully, especially all 

 the knot-holes, or any place that might al- 

 low bees to enter and find a cavity. If you 

 place yourself so that the bees will be be- 

 tween you and the sun, you can see them 

 plainly, even if they are among the highest 

 branches. Eemember you are to make a 

 careful and minute examination of every 

 tree, little and big, body and limbs, even if 

 it does make your neck ache. If you do not 

 find them by carefully looking the trees 

 over, go back and get your hunting-box, 

 bring it up to the spot, and give them feed 

 until you get a quart or more at work. You 

 can then see pretty clearly where they enter. 

 If you do not find them the first day, you 

 can readily start them again almost any 



* Since this was written, an A B C scholar says: 

 "Bees vary in their flight. But 1 have found tliat 

 on an average they will fly a mile in five minutes, 

 and spend about two minutes in the hive or tree. 

 Of course, they will spend more time in a tree when 

 they have to crawl a long distance to get to the 

 brood-nest, hence we may deduce the rule : Sub- 

 tract two from the number of minutes absent, and 

 divide by ten. The quotient is the number of ruiles 

 from the stand to the ti-ee. (See GTjEanings, 18bT, 

 page 431.) This applies to a partially wooded coun- 

 try. Perhaps in a clearing they could make better 

 time. On a very windy day it takes them longer to 

 make trips." 



+ The same writer says further : " It is a waste of 

 time to look for the bee-tree, or to make cross-lines, 

 until you get beyond the tree. When the bees fly 

 back on tlie line, you may rest assured that you are 

 beyond the tree. Move your last two stands closer 

 together (lining the bees carefully), so that they are 

 only ten or fifteen i ods apart. Now, as yovi have 

 bees flying from two directions into the tree you will 

 probably discover where they are immediately. But 

 if you fail to find them easily, take a stand at one 

 side, eight or ten rods, and cross-line. This is the 

 only place that I find a cross-line of any advantage. " 

 —See Oleanings in Bee Culture, Vul. X V., page 771. 



time, for they are very quick to start, when 

 they have once been at work, even though 

 it is several days afterward. Bees are some 

 times started by burning what is called 

 a "smudge." Get some old bits of comb 

 containing bee-bread as well as honey, and 

 burn them on a small tin plate, by setting 

 it over a little fire. The bees will be at- 

 tracted by the odor of the burning honey 

 and comb, and, if near, will sometimes come 

 in great numbers. 



A spy-glass is very convenient in finding 

 where the bees go in, especially if the tree is 

 very tall ; even the toy spy-glasses sold for 

 50 cents or a dollar are sometimes quite a 

 help. The most serviceable, however, are 

 the achromatic opera-glasses that cost from 

 $3.00 to $5.00. With these we can use bolh 

 eyes, and the field is so broad that no time 

 is lost in getting the glass instantly on the 

 spot. We can, hi fact, see bees with them 

 in the tops of the tallest trees almost as 

 clearly as we can see them going into hives 

 placed on the ground. 



After you have found the tree, probably 

 you will be in a hurry to get the bees that 

 you know are there, and the honey that may 

 be there. Do not fix your expectations too 

 high, for you may not get a single pound of 

 the latter. Of two trees that we took a few 

 years ago, one contained ju.st about as much 

 honey as we had fed them, and the other 

 contained not one visible cell full ! The 

 former were fair hybrids, and the latter well- 

 marked Italians. If the tree is not a valu- 

 able one, and stands where timber is cheap 

 and plentiful, perhaps the easiest way is to 

 cut it down. This may result in a smashed 

 heap of ruins, with combs, honey, and bees 

 all mixed up with dirt and rubbish, or it may 

 fall so as to strike on the limbs or small 

 trees, and thus ease its fall in such a way as 

 to do very little injury to the tree or forest. 

 The chances are rather in favor of the 

 former, and on many accounts it is safer to 

 climb the tree and let the bees' part down 

 with a rope. If the hollow is in the body of 

 the tree, or so situated that it can not be cut 

 oif above and below, the combs may be taken 

 out ai!d let down in a pail or basket ; for the 

 brood-combs, and such as contain but little 

 honey, the basket will be rather preferable. 

 The first thing, however, will be to climb the 

 tree ; and as we should be very sorry to give 

 any advice in this book that might in any 

 way lead to loss of life, we will, at the out- 

 set, ask you not to attempt climbing unless 

 you are, or can be, a very careful person. 

 An old gentleman who has been out with 



