;»12 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dkc. 1. 



if boe-keep(>rs would write and tell him what 

 experiments they would like tried." Look 

 hei(% friend L., try the experiment of getting 

 out of your shell and letting us know what you 

 are doing. We have lots of confidence in you, 

 and are interested in your successes and your 

 failures. Those government chaps will be just 

 as well satislied with your annual report if it 

 has all been given beforehand in the bee-jour- 

 nals. 



POLLEN AND LARVAL BEES. 



BROOD FOOD ; WHAT IS IT '? 



A correspondent writes. "Is that true, which 

 scientists claim, that the young bee in the larval 

 state does not eat pollen, but that its food con- 

 sists of a purely animal secretion?"' 



Well, in the light looked at it by our corres- 

 pondent I do not think it true, and I can not 

 help thinking that they who thus argue are 

 making a mistake; for, from the many careful 

 observations regarding the food of larval bees, 

 I have been led to believe that such food was 

 composed of about two parts honey or saccha- 

 rine matter, four parts pollen, or flour, when 

 such is used in early spring as a substitute, and 

 one part water, the whole being taken into the 

 stomach of the bee and formed into chyme, aft- 

 er which it was given to the larval bees in the 

 creamlike form as we see it in the cells. 



Right here I wish to digress a little and give 

 some further observations as bearing on the eat- 

 ing of pollen by the old bees. Sometimes old bees 

 eat pollen for the purpose of bridging ovei- a 

 time of scarcity, and at others they do not. the 

 same being conditioned on whether there is 

 brood in the hive or not. One year my bees 

 had hardly a cell of honey in their hives during 

 the fore part of June, at which time of year we 

 have a scarcity of honey, but always plenty of 

 pollen. By way of experiment I fed a part of 

 my colonies, and let the rest go without feeding, 

 to see if the bees in those hives, having scarcely 

 a cell of honey in them, but plenty of brood in 

 all stages, would live if provided with pollen, 

 which was given in abundance. As the weath- 

 er at that time was so unfavorable that the 

 bees did not fly for several days. I anxiously 

 watched them to see what they would do as 

 soon as the few cells of honey were gone. The 

 first thing noted was, that, as soon as all the 

 honey was gone, the larvte were scrimped of 

 food, and the eggs were removed from the cells 

 (probably eaten by the bees, as I have seen bees 

 eat eggs' dropped by the queen), while, during 

 the next day. there was a general eating of the 

 larviB. The next day after, the sealed di'one brood 

 was taken from the cells and sucked dry. while 

 the harder parts were scattered about the en- 

 trance and bottom-board of the hive. At this 

 time I noticed the bees putting their tongues 

 together as they do when young bees take a 

 load of nectar from the field-bees in time of 

 plenty, which thing was continued till nearly 

 all of the pollen was used up in the hive, which 

 lasted for several days, when it came good 

 weather again so new supplies were gathered. 

 Since then I have noticed the same thing sev- 

 eral times under like circumstances, but always 

 when there was brood in the hive. Remember- 

 ing these facts I tried the same experiment in 

 the fall when there was no brood in the hive, 

 at two different times, but in each case I suc- 

 ceeded in starving the colonies with not a cell 

 of pollen touched, so far as I could discover. 



From these observations and experiments I 

 have formed the opini(m that old bees partake 

 of pollen only in the form of chyme, and that 

 this chyme is prepared only when there is o)- 



has been brood lately in the hive. But, to re- 

 turn: 



That the larval bee subsists wholly on this 

 creamy food, or chyme, I think no one will 

 deny: and if, from my personal observations. I 

 am correct, the largest element in the food is 

 pollen. As the larva absorbs this food, the 

 grosser part of the pollen forms into the yellow 

 streak seen in all larvte when taken out of the 

 comb, but most plainly in the drone larva^ 

 which streak is finally inclosed by the intes- 

 tines of the newly hatched bee, and evacuated 

 on its first flight. To show that I am not alone 

 in the belief that pollen enters largely into the 

 food of the larval bee, I wish to give the testi- 

 mony of others who incline to a like belief. 

 (Jundelach says: 



•" The larva is immediately fed by the work- 

 ers with a pellucid jelly prepared in the chyle- 

 stomachs by the digestion of honey and pollen 

 mixed with water." 



Neighbour says: 



" A portion of this pollen is taken at once by 

 the " nursing bees,' which are supposed to sub- 

 ject it to some change before offering it to the 

 larvae." 



Kirby says: 



" With this pollen, after it has undergone a 

 conversion into a sort of whitish jelly by being 

 received into the bee's stomach, where it is mix- 

 ed with honey and regurgitated, the young 

 brood, immediately upon their exclusion, and 

 until their change into nymphs, are diligently 

 fed by other bees, which anxiously attend them, 

 and several times a day afford a fresh supply." 



(Jallup says: 



" Every bee-keeper ought to know that bees 

 do not feed pollen directly to their young; but 

 it is elaborated in the stomach of the bees into 

 chyme to feed the young on." 



Quinliy says: 



" How this food is prepared is mere conjec- 

 ture. The supposition is, that it is chiefly com- 

 posed of pollen. This is strongly indicated by 

 the quantity which accumulates in colonies 

 that lose their queens and rear no brood." 



Prof. Cook says: 



" The food is composed of pollen and honey — 

 certainly of pollen, for, as I have repeatedly 

 jjroven. without pollen no brood will be 

 reared." Again, " The function of bee-bread is 

 to help furnish the brood with proper food. In 

 fact, brood-rearing would be impossible with- 

 out it." 



A. 1. Root says: 



" It is supposed that this larval food is pollen 

 and honey, partially digested by the ' nursing 

 bees.' Bees of this age, or a little older, supply 

 the royal jelly for the queen-cells, which is the 

 same, I think", as the food given to the very 

 small larva. .Fust before the larvii? of the work- 

 er bees and di ones are sealed up, they are fed 

 on a coarser and less perfectly digested mixture 

 of honey and pollen." 



In the above all agree that pollen enters 

 largely into the food of the larval bee. and I 

 think that it must be conclusive to the reader 

 that tliis is right. Facts are what we want; 

 and if any of our scientific brethren can give 

 facts to overcome this testimony, we should be 

 pleased to hear from them. (t. M. Doolittle. 



Borodino, N. Y., Nov. 10. 



[We are a little surprised that you did not 

 quote from Cheshire and Cowan. The former 

 insists that royal jelly is a .secce/^/o/i from one 

 of the glands, and not a product of the chyle- 

 stomach. Mr. Cowan, as well as Prof. Cook, 

 with a long array of good authority to sustain 

 them, hold that this food is produced in the 

 chyle-stomach, and that the worker larvte are 

 fed on this concentrated food for three day.s. 



