February, '21] franxe: queen fertilization 1C9 



1901 J. S. Davitte of Aragon, Ga., used a tent of mosquito netting, 30 feet high and 

 30 feet in diameter. Colonies of bees containing selected drones and queens of 

 mating age were placed at the bottoms of such enclosure with the outside en- 

 trance covered with queen excluding perforated zinc and an inside entrance opened 

 from 11 :00 a. m. to 1 :30 p. m. on favorable days. Davitte reported loo successful 

 matings. This general plan has been tried by others biit without success. One 

 man used wire cloth instead of mosquito netting and the queens, drones and 

 workers killed themselves on the screen. Davitte's cage was wrecked by a 

 wind storm and not rebuilt. Beekeeper's Review, Feb. 1901 and R. I. Agri. 

 Exp. Sta. report, 1908, p. 307. 



1903 E. F. Phillips. Glass covered vivarium, Univ. Penn. Nuclei containing 

 drones and queens had outside entrances protected with perforated zinc and 

 unprotected inside entrances. Drones were used that had never flown out- 

 doors. Observations w'ere taken from the rafters. The queens would soon 

 strike the glass roof and alight and the drones would at once disperse, there 

 apparently being no attraction in a queen at rest. No matings. Beekeeping. 

 E. F. Phillips, 1915, p. 69-70. 



1907-8 A. C. Miller and L. J. Cole. A cloth tent nine feet square, nine feet high, 

 double walled, the cloth walls one inch apart permitted bees to fly in apparently 

 a normal manner. Several trials with no matings. The queens struck the top 

 a great deal in fl^'ing. The drones did not strike the top but flew freely. It may 

 be the drones failed to recognize the queen because of the presence of many 

 flying workers or if recognized mating failed to occur because of unfavorable 

 conditions, such as confinement and limitation of vertical space permitting 

 reaction of the queen to the drone. R. I. Agr. Exp. Sta. Report, 1908. p. 306-311 



1915 Wilmon Newell. Controlled matings at isolated bee-free stations on the 

 Texas Gulf Coast Prairie. Natural matings in the air. Successful crossing of 

 Italians and Carniolans. Science, n.s. 41 ; No. 1049, 218-219. 



1915 Jagar and Howard. Diluting sperm fluid and using pipette to introduce the 

 fluid into the vagina — one mating of six. Science, n.s. Vol. 40, No. 1037, p. 

 720. 



1915-16 Howard and France. Diluting sperm fluid and contents of seminal vesi- 

 cles of mature drones and introdviction with pipette into vagina. Three par- 

 tial successes of fifty -five. Jour. Ec. Ent. Vol. 11, No. 2, p. 265-267. 



1915-1916. C. E. Bartholemew. Personal statements to C. W. Howard and L. 

 V. France that he had at Ames, Iowa succssfuUy mated several queens by forc- 

 ing the contents of the drones sexual organs into the vagina of receptive virgin 

 queens. This item unpublished so far as is known. 



Iitl7 Geo. D. Sh.\fer. (a) Virgin queen and drone were each fastened at end of a 

 fine elastic wire holder. With wings buzzing queen and drone were brought 

 face to face in the air. No matings from several trials. 



(b) Forcing out drone sexual organs into vagina of queen. No matings from 

 several trials. Tech. Bull. 34, Mich. Agr. Exp. Station. 



1917 E. R. Root. "So far the only feasible plan for mating queens with select 

 drones is to put perforated zinc over the entrances of all colonies not having 

 choice drones, leaving only select drones to have the freedom of the air. A still 

 better plan is to take the queen mating nuclei to an island where there is a 

 colony containing select drones. This i.sland should be located at least five 

 miles from the mainland." 1917 Edition, A. B. C. of Bee Culture, A. I. Root 

 Co., Medina, Ohio. 



