Races of Bees 197 



them because they did not work on buckwheat ! Later 

 Rauchfuss Brothers, Denver, Colorado, imported queens of 

 this race and recommended them. Following this, addi- 

 tional queens were imported and American bred queens were 

 distributed by the United States Department of Agriculture 

 several years ago. 



The gentleness of this race is universally admitted, but 

 Caucasians have some faults which have caused them to be 

 abandoned by most beekeepers who have tried them. They 

 use propolis most 

 lavishly and in 

 the autumn of- 

 ten build a wall 

 at the entrance, 

 leaving holes 

 only large enough 



P "IK -^ IG< 94- Propolis at entrance, built by Caucasian 



; ingie bees. The entrance block on one side made a 



to pass (Fig. 94). propolis wall unnecessary there. 



They also build 



many burr and brace combs. The dark color makes it diffi- 

 cult to tell when the queens are purely mated and the dark 

 queens are difficult to find on the combs. An additional fac- 

 tor which has led to the lack of interest in this race is the 

 rapid spread of European foul brood within recent years. 

 This has virtually necessitated the use of Italian bees in 

 many localities and has discouraged experimentation with 

 other races. There are still several prominent beekeepers 

 who are enthusiastic in their praise of the Caucasians. 



Italian. 



This is the most popular race of bees among the best 

 American beekeepers. The bees of Italy vary considerably 

 in color, those in the north of the country being virtually 

 identical with the German bees in color. The typical 

 "three-banded" Italians are found farther south and in 

 Sicily there is a still lighter strain. Some investigators 

 believe Italians to be a cross between the German and 



