91 



hive. For over an hour there seemed to be 

 no sign of life. In about three hours they 

 beaan to *' come to." 



There, we have just taken another look. 

 The bees are active again; but they do not 

 look quite normal — in fact, a little logy — 

 and there is a distinct smell of dysentery. 

 We said the bees are all alive, but there is 

 quite a pile of them yet on the bottom-board. 

 A few of them that dropped down from 

 the cluster are beginning to show signs of 

 life. 



For three whole days this little cluster of 

 bees was chilled clear through, without any 

 apparent movement. How much longer they 

 might have remained and revived can only 

 be guessed ; but it is apparent that, when 

 the surrounding temperature is cold (below 

 freezing), and the cluster is too small to 

 generate heat by muscular activity as shown 

 on page 49, the bees have to remain chilled 

 until the weather changes. 



At the time we removed the colony from 

 its pedestal on the outside the thermometer 

 in the hive but remote from the cluster 

 sliowed 29; and the cluster at the time we 

 examined it in its chilled state was as cold 

 as death. Apparently the temperature of 

 the individual bees in the cluster was the 

 same as the reading of the thermometer — 

 that is, 29. 



Some years ago, late one fall, the outdoor 

 bees had a beautiful flight. They rushed out 

 in a roar. A sudden cold wind set in with 

 a rainstorm, striking down to the ground 

 thousands of bees. It began to freeze, and 

 a thin skim of ice covered the bees. We 

 supposed, of coui'se, all were lost, for the 

 cold spell lasted for about three days. Then 

 bright sunshine came on and melted this 

 thin skim of ice. The atmosphere turned 

 warm, when, wonderful to relate, those bees 

 that had been covered with ice began to 

 show signs of life. They soon began to 

 crawl, and after a little they flew back to 

 their hives. Our apiarist told us what was 

 taking place, but we thought he certainly 

 must be mistaken. Examination showed that 

 the bees were rapidly taking wing from the 

 ground where they had been under the ice 

 for three days. Other persons have since 

 reported the same thing. 



It is apparent, then, that bees can stand a 

 freezing temperature for a time. Whether 

 they are the worse for the experience after- 

 ward we are unable to say. 



Again, we have observed over and over 

 again, that, when there is a protracted zero 

 spell for ten days or longer, we find, as soon 

 as it warms up, a large number of the 

 clusters of bees outdoors chilled through 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



stone dead beyond recovery ; that if the zero 

 spell lasts four or five days, or not more 

 than a week, these clusters that were chilled 

 through will gradually assume their normal 

 condition again as soon as it warms up; 

 but if it lasts ten days or longer these small 

 clusters never revive. Apparently, bees can 

 stand a chilling of about ten days, and that 

 is all 



Another fact is interesting in this connec- 

 tion. A few years ago when Dr. E. F. 

 Phillips was at our Medina yard conducting 

 some experiments of his own, acting under 

 his directions we put some queen-cages con- 

 taining some bees and queens on cakes of 

 ice in a refrigerator. The cages were placed 

 face down on the ice. Both the queens and 

 their attendants were chilled through; -and 

 while their temperature jn'obably was not 

 below 34 or 35, they to all intents and pur- 

 poses ap,peared dead. We found we could 

 keep them in this chilled condition for about 

 ten days but not any longer. Queens sub- 

 jected to this long chilling period, contrary 

 to all expectations, began laying normally 

 as before. 



We are presenting these observations on 

 the matter of chilled bees during winter to 

 stimulate further observation and get fur- 

 ther reports. Dr. Phillips and Mr. Demuth, 

 of the United States Department of Agri- 

 culture, have shown that when the tempera- 

 ture of the cluster and the atmosphere 

 immediately surrounding it drops below 57 

 F. that bees have the power to raise the 

 internal temperature by exercise. They are 

 now trying to determine what amount of 

 protection, if any, is needed to keep the 

 bees as nearly in a state of quiet as possible, 

 so they will not have to " exercise," warm 

 themselves up, overeat, and thus bring on 

 dysenter3^ 



There is a wide unexplored field in this 

 matter of wintering. As will be seen by 

 reports elsewhere, Dr. Phillips and Mr. 

 Demuth are working at this problem from 

 several different angles. Our own experi- 

 ments as recorded above were for the pur- 

 pose of confirming their observations al- 

 ready reported on the internal temperature 

 of a cluster of bees. 



HIBERNATION OR WHAT? 



One more question : Do bees semi-hiber- 

 nate when they ai'e chilled thrnugli so as to 

 preclude movement? Is it true hibernation 

 for the time being, or what? If they could 

 remain in this chilled condition through the 

 winter, or until warm weather comes on, 

 like. flies and ants, it would be true hiberna- 

 tion. Again, is it possible that bees under 

 some conditions can remain chilled more 

 than ten days or two weeks? 



