1897. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



723 



are not fit to develop No. 1 queens — neither is a pint of bees 

 equal to the task. 



The plan for securing young nurse-bees to populate your 

 breeding hive may be something like the following : 



First, secure the larvie, and properly prepare it and ad- 

 just it in a frame of old, clean comb. Place this in the hive. 

 Draw a frame of honey and pollen, but no eggs nor larvas, 

 from a strong colony ; hang this also in the hive. Draw 

 another frame of sealed honey, but no larviB, and put into the 

 hive. Shake all the bees o£f these frames first. Hang in an 

 empty frame or one filled with foundation for a fourth one. 

 Your hive has now four frames. It should have i;-.i-inch ven- 

 tilating holes at each end, covered with wire-cloth. Set it 20 

 or 30 yards from the other hives. 



Go to a full colony and draw three or four frames that are 

 well covered with bees, and shake them in front of the hive. 

 The bulk of the old bees will fly back to their hive, and the 

 young bees you must make run into the breeding hive. Go to 

 other strong hives and draw more bees, and shake in front 

 until you get fully two quarts or more of bees in the hive. 

 You now have nearly all young bees. Close the entrance with 

 wire-cloth, and carry to a cool, dark room, and let it remain 

 till near dark, then carry it to its stand. It is best to set up 

 some obstructions in front to ward off robbers or strange bees. 



In nine days from the time of forming it, cut out all 

 queen-cells but one. Place these in other hives prepared to 

 receive them. Destroy all puny cells — best to do this now, 

 rather than wait to destroy puny queens. 



Richmond Co., Ga. 



Bes-Moth or Wax-Moth — Questions Answered. 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 



The following from Mr. C. Theiimann, of Wabasha Co., 

 Minn., is of special interest: 



Prof. Oook :— I take the liberty to ask you some ques- 

 tions about the wax-moth, on which myself and other bee- 

 keepers cannot agree, namely ; How (in what way) do the 

 eggs of the wax-moth get into a colony of bees? There may 

 be some instances where the moth lays the eggs direct in the 

 hive, but I never saw any so laid, in normal colonies. I hold 

 that the moth lays the eggs on the pollen of the flowers, and 

 the bees gather them and store them with the pollen, where 

 they hatch as wee little worms, hardly visible to the naked 

 eye ; then protect themselves with a web or net of their own 

 fabrication, and, as they advance in regular gangs, they feed 

 on the larval food while they spin the nearly-matured larvae 

 of the bees fast to the comb which holds them. Thus crippled 

 they are gnawed out by the workers and thrown out of the 

 hive. 



If the moth-worm is not molested or killed by the bees, 

 then when it is matered it finds a crevice or bores a hole and 

 goes into the pupa state, and hatches out a caterpillar ^ of 

 an inch long. This I understand is the wax-moth. Am I cor- 

 rect? If not, what is it called ? 



My opponents say : Every bee-keaper knows, if any- 

 thing, that the wax-moth lays the eggs directly In the hive, 

 and only there. Kindly inform us who is right and who is 

 wrong. 



My experience Is this : When a comb with pollen is ex- 

 posed to zero weather during the winter, no wax-moth will 

 ever hatch from it : while a comb taken from a hive and pro- 

 tected with a wire-screen, and put along side of the other in 

 summer-time will be alive with moth-worms in a very short 

 time, all starting from the pollen. How did the eggs get 

 there? You will do us a great favor by any information on 

 the subject. I am aware that we have different species of 

 moths which infest our bees and their product. One is a very 

 little fellow about '« of an inch long, which, with favorable 

 conditions, gets very numerous, on clear section honey, and 

 makes many little holes in the combs, so they are unfit for the 

 market. What is the name of this moth ? I never have se5n 

 it in the hives, and only on comb honey in close or sultry 

 rooms if left there for any length of time. There is another 

 large, dark, grey moth over one inch lone, with big body, 

 which plays havoc sometimes with weak, queenless colonies, 

 yes, destroys them entirely. What is the name of this moth ? 



Have you ever seen pure melted wax attackt by moths? 

 I have not. Others claim that they have. How is this? 



C. Theilmann. 



I am glad to reply to Mr. Theiimann, and especially so, 

 as I doubt not many others are vext with the same doubts 

 that he is. 



I do not think that he Is correct. I do not think the bee- 

 moth, GallerUi cereana, ever lays her eggs on the pollen in 

 the flowers. First, we never see her about flowers, as we cer- 

 tainly should If her nidus were there. Second, we never find 

 her eggs on the flowers, as I feel sure we would were they 

 placed on the anthers that bear the pollen. Third, we always 

 find the moths lurking or flying about where there are combs, 

 either in bee-hives, with bees, in empty hives or boxes with 

 combs, or else in bee-houses where combs are housed. As is 

 true of all insects, they are attracted to the spot where they 

 wish to lay their eggs. Here it is the combs that lure them, 

 for on or near the combs they are to lay their eggs. Fourth, 

 we know that sometimes they enter the hives to lay their 

 eggs, for we actually discover them in the act; hence, it is 

 presumable that they always do, when they are able to do so. 

 I have no doubt but that the bee-moth or wax-moth always 

 lay their eggs on the comb, or as near it as they can get. 



If we leave combs in summer in a, box they will be stockt 

 with eggs and peopled with moth-larvfe, altho no bees have 

 been near them. This alone seeiis to me fatal to Mr. Theil- 

 mann's theory regarding the eggs being laid on the pollen in 

 the flowers. If the moth cannot get into the hive she will lay 

 her eggs close by the entrance outside. Other insects act 

 similarly. The potato-beetle does not always lay her eggs on 

 the potato leaves, but often on grass or weeds close beside the 

 potato- vines. 



The bee-moth is doubtless attracted by some odor, the 

 wax, bee-bread, or something else about the comb. If possi- 

 ble she goes to the combs, else she lays her eggs as near to 

 them as she can reach. I believe this last is true, as I have 

 had combs attackt that could not possibly be reacht by the 

 moth. The eggs hatch, and if possible the larva; proceed at 

 once to feed on the pollen or bee-bread, tunnel the combs, 

 and fashion their silken runways. If the comb is not close at 

 hand, guided by a sense which in insects is more delicate than 

 we can understand from our own dull sense of smell, they 

 pass to the comb, and commence operations as before. 



I think Mr. T. is correct. I think very severe cold — pos- 

 sibly a zero temperature — kills the moths In winter. Mr. 

 Quinby discovered this fact years ago. But combs in empty 

 hives, exposed to such cold, will not be safe if left exposed the 

 next season. The experiment Mr. T. suggests might be as 

 follows : 



The combs taken from the hive were already stockt with 

 eggs or caterpillars from the eggs laid outside the hive, as 

 already described. The other comb had been where the moth 

 could not stock it with eggs. I have found two ways to keep 

 combs practically free from moth-larvae. First, keep them in 

 good, strong, vigorous colonies of bees. This rarely fails, and 

 almost never if the bees are Italians. Second, keep the combs 

 in some box several feet from any place accessible to the 

 moth. I do not think that combs hung so as not to touch in a 

 light room are likely to be much troubled. 



I do not believe the bee-moth larvae feed much on the 

 wax. I think it is more the bee-bread or pollen. The wax is 

 not a perfect food, and seems so indigestible that we should 

 hardly think it would serve for food at all, yet the wax-moth 

 larvse may have become adapted even to this food. It may do 

 them some good, yet I think without doubt the bee-moth larvae 

 feed for the most part on the bee-bread. The jelly fed to the 

 brood may serve in part for their food. I do not thinjt that 

 they ever feed on pure wax. I have never known them to do 

 so, and am sure that pure wax could not sustain them. The 

 Insects usually pass the winter In the pupa state, and in the 



