376 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



July 



FROM DOOIilTTIiE. 



BEES FLYING 90 MILES AN HOUR. 



S" SEE by the last two numbers of Gleanings, that 

 what 1 said of the experiment, regarding bees 

 — ' being let to fly from a train of cars going 30 

 miles an hour, as given by P. H. El wood, has created 

 quite a stir, and the whole talk seems directed 

 toward Doolittle, while as yet I have not said a word 

 regarding what I thought in the matter. Several 

 years ago, when there was quite an excitement alwut 

 overstocking a locality with bees, I said that bees 

 flew from 4 to 7 miles from their hives for stores; 

 and in trjing to prove the fact, I mentioned the "90 

 miles an hour" experiment, as above. But for all 

 my reasoning, giving facts, etc., friend Root was an 

 unbeliever till friend March came forward and con- 

 verted him. At that time I made some experiments 

 to see how fast bees fly; and as a result I came to 

 the conclusion that a bee could fly 75 miles an hour 

 in a still day, with a clear atmosphere, while in a 

 damp, muggy, or windy time, they do not fly more 

 than from one-third to one-half as fast. Also, the 

 bee does not get at full speed till half a mile or more 

 from home, while, when returning with a load, the 

 last half-mile is gone over very slowly, more espe- 

 cially as the hive appears in sight. That a bee can 

 not breast a heavy gale, I am well aware, as their 

 wings are not made for chat purpose, as arc those of 

 a duck, and some other strong-flying birds; but of 

 one thing Mr. Shuck is mistaken; which is, that a 

 wind blowing 90 miles an hour would take the hives 

 out of my yard; for we had a wind blowing 83 miles 

 an hour, three years ago, and not a hive was stirred, 

 although several houses and barns had their roofs 

 damaged to some extent. But, to the experiments I 

 tried : 



The special New York express train running on 

 the N. Y. C. & H. R. R. R. runs 60 miles an hour at 

 certain places between Rochester and Syracuse; and 

 by standing a rod or so from it as it passed I was en- 

 abled to get the rate of speed which was required to 

 make that time fixed in my mind so that I could 

 guess pretty closely as to the relative flight of any 

 object. About a mile from my apiary is a rise of 

 ground over which the bees must pass in going for 

 basswood toward the close of the harvest. Here I 

 could hear the sound of the bees as they passed 

 over; but I had, up to this time, seldom seen any, 

 except in a strong wind, when the bees always fly 

 nearer the ground. I lay down flat on my back, and 

 placed my hands each side of my cj'cs, and looked 

 steadily up to the sky. After a little I could see the 

 bees pass: and to say that I was surprised at the 

 rate of speed they possessed, in a still, clear day, is 

 placing it mildly. After a careful comparison with 

 the train going 60 miles an hour, I decided that 75 

 miles an hour was about the rate of speed the bee 

 attained when going 4 to 6 miles from home for 

 stores. ' 



Again: A good horse will trot a mile in 3 minutes, 

 and a man can run nearly as fast as a horse will 

 trot, for a little way, say 15 or 20 rods. Thus a man 

 can run at the rate of 20 miles an hour. Now, a 

 swarm of bees does not fly in a straight line; thai is, 

 each bee does not fly in the direction the swarm is 

 moving, for all observers are aware that each bee 

 describes a circle, so that it looks as if the bees were 

 going through the air in every direction. This will 

 he observed at whatever rate of speed the swarm is 

 going. Thus it will be gecn that the bees travel 



about three times as fast as the distance made by 

 the whole swarm. As there are swarms, when, un- 

 der full headway, that no man can run fast enough 

 to keep up with, even for a little way, this gives 

 nearly the same result (75 miles an hour) as before. 



Once more : The church which I attend is situated 

 2^2 miles from my apiary, in the direction of the 

 teasel fields; and in coming from church I often 

 notice the bees going home with their loads of teasel 

 honey, whenever they have a strong wind to face. 

 At two miles from home they pass by me, facing 

 quite a strong wind, at the rate of 25 or more miles 

 an hour, while, when I get within one-fourth of a 

 mile of home, I can easily drive my horse so as to 

 keep up with them. As they come nearer, they fly 

 still slower, so the horse need not go off a walk to 

 keep up with them, at from 5 to 10 rods from the 

 apiary. In a still, clear day I do not see any bees 

 till I get near the apiary; but by stopping my horse 

 I can hear them flying over at any place on the 

 road. 



Friend Root says, on page 314, that he has " often 

 kept up with bees without driving fast, when they 

 were going to and from a buckwheat field," but he 

 does not say how near he was to his apiary, nor 

 whether the day was clear and still. Friend Root, 

 did you not "hazard that opinion" of bees flying 

 from 10 to 15 miles an hour from what you had seen 

 while within one-half mile of your apiary, on a 

 windy or muggy day? If you have seen bees flying 

 to and from a field, at a distance of one mile from 

 their home, and one-half mile from the field of 

 flowers, on a still, clear day, you have seen some- 

 thing I never have, except as I have given, where 

 they Hew over the rise of ground. 



Borodino, N. Y. G. M. Doolittle. 



Thank you, friend D. Since you mention 

 these things, and explain them, many facts 

 come to mind to convince me you are at 

 least not far from right. For instance, 1 do 

 now remember that the bees were not far 

 from their hives, when they flew alongside 

 of our buggy. I have, too, noticed bees fly- 

 ing over a hill, when they seemed to go hke 

 a flash of light; and, by the way, I wonder 

 how many of the friends have learned to see 

 a bee on the wing. AVhen you can hear them 

 roaring overhead, look up, and you will see 

 nothing ; but after a great deal of trying you 

 may get your eye on a single bee ; and if you 

 can turn your head fast enough to keep your 

 eye on him, you will, of a sudden, discover 

 not only this single bee, but a multitude, 

 right alongside of him, moving with almost 

 incredible speed. I once heard a roaring 

 noise overhead, and looked up just in time 

 to see a large swarm high up in the air, go- 

 ing at a speed so great that it seemed to me 

 no horse in the world could keep up with 

 them. They were out of sight in an instant. 

 Now, we all know that swarms often go so 

 slow that one can almost keep up with them 

 on a walk. Who can say how fast they may 

 go, when really in an emigrating moody 

 Now a word in regard to railway trains run- 

 ning CO miles an hour. I have been told by 

 good authority, or at least what I consider 

 such, that trains do not get up to that speed, 

 not even for a single mile. Have we an ex- 

 perienced railroad friend among our number 

 who has seen this thing tested by actual, 

 ' careful test V 



