OCTOBER 1, 1912 



A Few More Instances of Chickens Eating Live 

 Worker Bees 



We had one chicken about five or six years ago 

 that we found eating bees from our hives more 

 than once, picking them up in a hurry — live bees, 

 too. However, it seems to be a rare occurrence. 



Tazewell, Tenn. Henry B. Southekn, Jr. 



I live in the city, and have bees and chickens 

 together on one lot. I discovered one of my largest 

 Plymouth Rock hens eating live bees ofif the alight- 

 ing-board, and I watched her to be sure. Well, she 

 did not eat any more. 



Lima, Ohio. Mrs. J. A. Mooney. 



I have kept bees for 30 years and chickens for 

 a longer time, but have never kept both in the 

 same yard ; but the fowls were liberated each day 

 for a run in the beeyard to eat grass. In 1897 

 I had a half-grown grade cockerel that would rush 

 to the hives as soon as liberated, and eat live 

 worker bees with as much relish as he would eat 

 corn ; but, like Mr. Gray's early riser, he died 

 young, and that is the only case of which I have 

 positive knowledge. 



A Dayton friend, who kept both in the same 

 yard, had two first-prize cocks stung to death last 

 year. 



The trouble that I would fear would be their 

 eating young queens that are out getting their loca- 

 tion before making their mating flight. 



Dayton, O. J. W. Nichols. 



I had two stands of bees in my poultry lot last 

 summer, and they were almost ruined by the 

 poultry. The chickens would stand by the hive 

 and watch the bees, and pick them up as fast as 

 they appeared. They were watching for bees all 

 the time. Finally I separated the bees from the 

 chickens ; then the bees soon became strong. This 

 year I have increased my apiary from 2 to 8 

 colonies. The poultry-yard is about 4 ft. to the 

 rear of the bees ; and I noticed yesterday, as 

 soon as a bee crossed the poultry-yard the chick- 

 ens were right after it. I saw them catch half 

 a dozen or more. I think the reason for the 

 hens eating the bees is this : Where poultry have 

 but a small yard they are not able to get many 

 insects, and unless you feed them plenty of meat 

 they begin to catch drones, eat the head of crip- 

 pled bees, and finally they develop an appetite for 

 bees, the same as a man does for tobacco. After 

 I penned the poultry from the bees they would 

 just stand up close to the fence and watch the 

 bees. You may think I am exaggerating ; but 

 I shall be pleased to prove it to any one who 

 will take the trouble to call on me. I am satisfied 

 that, if you will pen 40 or 50 chickens in a small 

 lot with two stands of bees, the chickens will 

 eventually ruin them. 



Columbus, O., Sept. 14. S. S. Snyder. 



For a dozen years I have had bees and chick- 

 ens occupying the same territory in an apple or- 

 chard. Two years ago in the spring, during fruit 

 bloom, I noticed a Wyandot hen busy at the en- 

 trance of a hive picking up, killing, and then 

 swallowing bees. When I would scare her from 

 one hive she would go to another, and kept on 

 eating bees until she had her fill. The next day 

 she was at it again, when I caught her and sent 

 her to market. 



A few days later I found another one doing 

 the same thing; then I began to take notice. I 

 found the combs crowded with brood. We were 

 having some real chilly nights. Each morning the 

 bees would bring out some chilled brood that was 

 white and tender and drop some of it around the 

 entrances. This made a sweet morsel for the hen. 

 She soon learned where to find it ; and while look- 

 ing for this, bees loaded with pollen would alight 

 right there where she was picking up "grub," and 

 she turned her attention to them. By close and 

 persistent watching I found that the chickens ate 

 no bees except those loaded with pollen. Except 

 this one time, chickens have never bothered my 

 bees. 



"losing" laying workers. 



I had a very bad case of laying workers a few 

 weeks ago. When I discovered it some of the 

 combs were nearly full of capped drone brood, and 

 there were hundreds of little insignificant drones 



637 



in the hive. Many cells had half a dozen or more 

 eggs in them. After failing to introduce a queen, 

 and having some queen-cells torn down, the fol- 

 lowing plan succeeded admirably: I took out one 

 comb and placed it in an empty hive. I then 

 shook off every bee into this hive, and placed the 

 combs back in the old hive after shaving off the 

 heads of the unhatched drones. Then I placed 

 the hive with the Ibees about 40 feet away, and 

 left it until next morning. By this time most of 

 the bees had returned to the old stand. I shook 

 off the remaining bees, closed that hive, and re- 

 turned the one comb to its original place, and 

 introduced a queen by the usual candy route, which 

 was readily accepted. The layers and most of the 

 drones failed to find their way back, while the 

 workers all came back home. 



Liberty, Tenn., Aug. 28. W. P. Banks. 



The One-hole Feeder Applied to the Alexander 

 Feeder 



The drawing shows my method of stimulative 

 feeding with a one-hole feeder. Should I care to 

 feed for drawing out comb, or perhaps making up 

 for a shortage of stores in the fall, I remove the 

 one-hole feeder, putting on the regular block, and 

 use the feeder in the regular way. 



The first day I use the one-hole feeder I pour 

 some syrup in the Alexander feeder, and then put 



on the one-hole feeder at once. Of course, I move 

 the piece of screen and also the cleat, which is 

 nailed near the end.. 



This feeder is an improvement over either the 

 Boardman or pepper-can feeder in more ways than 

 one. It works perfectly, and prevents robbing en- 

 tirely. I feed V2 pint daily (two parts water and 

 one part sugar). 



St. Louis, Mo., May 6. Harrison Fisbech. 



[An arrangement of this kind can be used where 

 it is desired to practice slow feeding with the Alex- 

 ander feeder. If one has already attached to his 

 hives such feeders, or the Boardman, one or two 

 holes can be used in connection very nicely. In our 

 own practice we prefer the regular entrance Board- 

 man feeder, and have little or no trouble from rob- 

 bing, particularly when the bees are not allowed to 

 take the feed any faster than they can take it from 

 one or two holes. — Ed.] 



The Way I Make a Success with Bees 



Since Walter S. Pouder has opened the subject 

 along the line of beekeeping that I have practiced, 

 page 378, June 15, it has encouraged me to tell 

 how I have made a little money out of a few bees 

 I keep. It is all right to talk about keeping bees 

 for the pleasure there is in it; but how many of 

 us can afford to do so when we have a family to 

 support ? We all love a little recreation ; but how 

 nicer it is when we get some returns from it too ! 



In the first place, I get my bees to the swarm- 

 ing point about the time the honey-flow begins, 

 then I proceed as follows. I take an empty hive 

 body with inch starters; select two frames with 

 brood in all stages, making sure that I do not 

 have the queen on either one ; place the queen- 

 excluding board on the hive, then put the empty 

 body on top with the two combs of brood in it and 

 one frame with an inch starter between. By this 

 change the bees get into the upper story immediate- 

 ly ; and as the two frames are spread apart the 

 bees will cluster between them and begin comb- 

 building at once. Iri a few days I spread the 



