AUGUST 15, 1916 



723 



This explains it exactly. Doubtless bees 

 feel the effect of climate and the indisposi- 

 tion to work as keenly as man; and why 

 should they exert themselves to go a long 

 distance when they have enough in their 

 hives'? "We little realize how much muscular 

 energy is required to carry a bee thru the 

 air, especially when loaded, until we watch 

 them drop at the entrance of the hive ex- 

 hausted and panting for breath. It stands 

 to reason, therefore, that bees will not go 

 nearlj' as far in the climate of Florida as in 

 a different climate, even if other conditions 

 were the same. 



Another condition atlecting the flight of 

 bees, especially here in the North, is the 

 temperature of the air. I have been sur- 

 prised to learn within the last few years the 

 distance bees will fly in cool weather as 

 compared with the distance they will fly in 

 warm weather. A few years ago the weath- 

 er was quite cool during fruit and dande- 

 lion bloom, and, as a result, the bees of 

 almost every large apiary were in a starv- 

 ing condition before clover bloomed, while 

 those in the small yards, with half a dozen 

 colonies, had fllled their hives and were 

 swarming. This is easily explained. While 

 there were flowers enough in the small area 

 over which bees could fly for a few colonies, 

 there were not enough for a large number. 

 Had the weather been warm enough so bees 

 could have flown as far as they do in July, 

 I believe there would have been but little 

 difference in the condition of large and 

 small apiaries. 



Another proof of tlie short distance bees 

 will fly in cool weather is the barren fruit- 

 trees or ci'anberrj'-bogs some distance from 

 where there are bees. This is not so notice- 



able when the weather is warm; but if cool 

 we may learn the fact to our sorrow. 



Another factor governing the distance 

 bees fly is the strain or race. A friend was 

 telling not long ago how, when he first Ital- 

 ianized his bees, he went two and a half 

 miles from home to a piece of alsike clover 

 to see if any of his Italian bees went that 

 far. To his surprise he found them in great 

 abundance. He said that another beekeep- 

 er living only one mile from the field of 

 clover liad black bees, yet he found fourteen 

 times as many of his Italian bees to the same 

 number of colonies, by actual count, as he 

 did of the black bees, altho his Italian bees 

 wei^e two and a half times as far away. He 

 said, further, his bees had no trouble in 

 getting basswood honey when the trees were 

 two to five miles from home. An inspector 

 is not infrequently surprised at the stories 

 told by old bee-hunters of the distance they 

 have lined bees. 



Altho there may be no way to prove it. 

 it seems probable that bees do not fly nearly 

 as far in cloudy weatlier as when the sun is 

 shining, other things being the same. The 

 same is doubtless true of showery weather. 

 Bees do not like to be caught out when it 

 rains; and yet if nectar is abundant they 

 will work freely a shoi't distance, even in 

 the rain, if it is warm. 



Thus we see there are many things that 

 control the flight of bees in their search for 

 nectar — the topography of the country, 

 direction of the wind, climate, strain of 

 bees, temperature, weather conclitions, and 

 it may be other conditions we have not yet 

 come to recognize. How much the years." as 

 they go by, are adding to our knowledge ! 



Middleburv, Vt. 



HOW CAN I PREVENT SO MANY DRONES? 



BY CHARLES E. DUSTMAN 



There are three ways by which the num- 

 ber of drones may be restricted. They may 

 be trapped, they may be destroyed before 

 emerging from the cells, or only worker 

 comb may be permitted in the brood-nest, 

 excepting, of course, a few drone-cells which 

 will be scattered thru the hive despite the 

 efforts of the apiarist. 



Some have argued that the apiarist is but 

 little hurt by the production of many 

 drones. In this they are much mistaken. 

 It costs ranch to produce drones, and much 

 to maintain them. To determine the cost of 

 producing drones we must consider the 

 amount of space they occupy, the amount of 

 stores they consume in development, and 



the amount of time they receive from at- 

 tendant bees. 



Sealed worker-brood combs are one inch 

 thick: drone-brood combs are li/4 inches 

 thick. In the matter of thickness of comb 

 the square foot of drone brood occupies 25 

 per cent more space. Worker brood occu- 

 pies the combs but 21 days, whereas drone- 

 brood occupies it 24 days, or 14 2/7 per cent 

 longer; 125 per cent of space occupied 14- 

 2/7 per cent longer is equal to 142 6/7 i>er 

 cent of space occupied for the same length 

 of time. This does not take into account 

 the damage done by crowding the adjoining 

 worker comb. 



As to the amount of stores required to 



