1112 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 1 



queen had access, showed dead larvae. I 

 did not feed any colonies during the attack, 

 using nature's own product to define the 

 cause, and I believe I feel justified in stating 

 that thin unripe honey fed to larv£e during 

 unfavorable weather conditions has a ten- 

 dency to bring on the disease. 



Whether the disease can be attributed to 

 feed alone, or to germs of a bacterial na- 

 ture, future developments may determine 

 more definitely. A. J. Halter. 



Akron, 0., Sept. 20. 



[See footnote to preceding article. —Ed.] 



WHY YOUNG BEES DO NOT BEGIN FIELD 

 WORK. 



Do the Hairs over the Eyes Obscure Vision at an 

 Early Age? 



BY ARTHUR C. MILLER. 



On page 846 Dr. E. F. Phillips had an in- 

 teresting article giving a theory as to why 

 bees do not begin field work at an early age. 

 He attributed it to imperfect vision, due to 

 the eyes being covered with hairs. Several 

 considerations at once present themselves to 

 cast doubt on the tenability of such a theory. 

 We know very little as to the action of bees' 

 eyes, particularly as to how much light is 

 needed to convey distinct images to their 

 perception. We know that they do many 

 things in nearly absolute darkness, and we 

 do not know whether they work under such 

 condition entirely by touch or by some sixth 

 sense, or whether they also use sight. We 

 know how distinct an image we can get on 

 a sensitive plate from the light admitted 

 through a very small pin-hole, and we also 

 know how much we can see with our eyes 

 when looking through a minute aperture. 

 The hairs do not shut off all light; they are 

 not so dense but that the bee can see through 

 them, for we can see the bee's eye, and the 

 bee has the advantage of having its eye 

 close to the apertures. 



But the greatest of all objections to Dr. 

 Phillips' theory is the fact that at swarm- 

 ing time bees of all ages, even to those too 

 weak to use their wings, rush forth with the 

 swarm, and all, except the weaklings, take 

 flight and go safely and surely, and show 

 every evidence of good usable eyesight. 

 This applies to virgin queens, to drones, and 

 to workers. I think it reasonable to assume 

 that eyesight is not the cause of lack of 

 early flight, or at most is only a slightly con- 

 tributing cause. 



On emergence from the cell the bee is not 

 perfect. Even to the unaided eye this is evi- 

 dent. It is small, weak, and unable to use 

 its wings, and evinces almost no efi'ort to do 

 so when tumbled from the comb. Structu- 

 rally, the bee is perhaps nearly complete; but 

 it takes many hours of stretching (if I may 

 use the term) before the abdomen assumes 

 normal dimensions; before the bee can walk 

 firmly and steadily; and still longer before 

 the bee can fly. Surely this indicates imma- 

 turity. 



I think it was the English naturalist Hun- 

 ter, who, about 1780, showed the great dif- 

 ference in the capacity and activity of the 

 stomach of the young from that of the ol 1 

 or field bee. In view of this, together with 

 what we know of the gi'adual change in the 

 habit of the bee as time elapses, is it not a 

 more plausible theory to attribute the chang- 

 ing activities to gradual functional changes 

 within the bee's body, rather than to the 

 mere shedding of a few hairs? Changes in 

 manner of living, due to organic changes, 

 are very numerous in the animal world. 



Perhaps, after all, the bee is not so far re- 

 moved from mankind but that she is led in 

 divers ways simply by a precocious appetite. 



Providence, R. I., Oct. 10. 



[I raised the same question about young 

 bees flying with the swarm, and flying out 

 for a playspell in front of the hives. Dr. 

 Phillips met me half way by saying that we 

 old bee-keepers did not, he thought, realize 

 how much the bees depended on their very 

 acute sense of smell for performing their 

 work. He called my attention to the fact 

 that bees would seem to follow robbers 

 through the air direct to the spot where the 

 stolen sweets were to be obtained. He be- 

 lieved that young bees could follow their 

 older sisters in the air by the mere sense of 

 smell. 



Perhaps I have not quoted the doctor cor- 

 rectly; but if not, he is at liberty to set him- 

 self right. I grant that there is consider- 

 able force to your argument, that young bees 

 during the first few days are very immature; 

 and whether blind or on account of obscure 

 vision they probably could not go forth into 

 the open air immediately. Possibly there is 

 a double reason— obscure vision and gener- 

 al weakness — that keeps young bees at 

 home. — Ed.] 



CLEANING PROPOLIS OFF FROM SEPARA- 

 TORS, FENCES, T TINS, ETC. 



A Valuable Aiticle. 



BY EMMA WILSON. 



In the A B C, p. 224, Emma Wilson tells 

 of cleaning separators with concentrated 

 lye. Can we have her tell us in Gleanings 

 if it proved a success, and if they still use 

 the plan? E. G. Carr. 



New Egypt, N. J., Oct. 29, 1904. 



[This was referred to Miss Wilson, who 

 replies. — Ed.] 



In reply to Mr. Carr I would say that, so 



far as removing the propolis was concerned, 



it was a success; but the separators curled 



badly in drying. Of course, this difficulty 



might have been overcome bj'^ putting them 



in a press; but as new ones were not very 



I expensive we preferred to buy new rather 



^ than fuss cleaning the old. In the case of 



;■„ fence separators it is different, as they are 



too expensive to throw away; and, although 



A I have not tried it, it is pretty certain that 



*s! they will not curl as the plain separators did. 



M 



