6G2 



ITHE; MMERICSN: BEE) JQURNSt. 



DO BEES HEAR? 



Have Bees the Seni«e of Hearing? 

 — Experiments. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 

 BY s. A. SHUCK. 



On pai^e 567, I find this sentence : 

 "Many seem to think that bees have 

 the sense of hearing, but so far all of 

 my ex))erimeuts go to prove to the 

 contrary." 



I am very sorry that this statement 

 comes from one whose teachings are 

 so i)lain and practical, and his logical 

 deductions so nearly without a fault, 

 that it gives me a feeling of regret to 

 believe that he is in error ; and not- 

 withstanding the fact that it makes no 

 difference in dollars and cents, to 

 scientific apiculture, whether bees hear 

 or not ; if they possess the sense of 

 healing, it must appear that any one 

 of extensive experience with bees 

 should have discovered this fact. 



I am confident that bees possess the 

 sense of hearing equal to that of sight, 

 scent or taste ; and if I fail to give 

 satisfactory evidence in support of my 

 position, will some one please to point 

 out my error ? 



In July, 1882, I attached one end of 

 a silken thread to the waist of a very 

 active virgin queen. The other end 

 of the thread was attached to a long 

 pole, and this pole was held up in the 

 apiary when the drones were flying 

 freely. This queen flew as far as the 

 thread would allow her to fly, and 

 continued her eftorts for some con- 

 siderable time. Then after a short 

 rest, renewed her eflbrts. This flying 

 and resting by turns, was repeated 

 many times. As long as she continued 

 to fly, the drones pursued here in great 

 numbers, but the instant she stopped 

 to rest, the drones dashed away as if 

 suddenly frightened, appearing again 

 as soon as the queen put forth an ef- 

 fort to tiy. Does it not appear that it 

 was the sound produced by the queen's 

 wings that attracted the drones ? 



Some four or six weeks ago I shook 

 a large swarm from my hiving-box on 

 the ground in front of a hive prepared 

 for them. A few bees remained in 

 the box, and instantly they com- 

 menced the "call " to their comrades 

 that were scrambling in every direc- 

 tion to gain a footing. I placed the 

 box under a large Russian sunflower, 

 some 3 feet from the entrance of tlie 

 hive. I saw the queen take wing from 

 the bees on the ground, and not seeing 

 her return to them, as soon as the 



bees got started into the hive, I took 

 up the box and found the queen in it. 



I do not think that this box, with 

 perhaps a hundred bees in it, smelled 

 more of bees than the 6 or 8 pounds of 

 Ijces on the ground ; and not only this, 

 but it is evident that this queen was 

 attracted more by the humming noise 

 of the few bees in the box, than she 

 was by the scent or sight of the 

 scrambling mass she deserted. 



Just as I had shaken a swarm from 

 this box in front of a hive, I discovered 

 another swarm issuing from a hive 

 only about 20 feet distant. The queen 

 of the issuing swarm could not fly, so 

 I knew that the bees would very soon 

 return. I quickly gathered up some 

 dry grass tliat had been cut from 

 among the hives, and piled it in front, 

 on the two sides and top of the hive 

 the bees were entering, thus covering 

 up the bees that I had just shaken 

 from the box. In a few moments the 

 bees in the air began to return, and 

 just as I had anticipated, commenced 

 tumbling down on this pile of grass, 

 and started right down through it to 

 the loud hunuuing beneath. I picked 

 up a small stick and commenced whip- 

 ping this pile of grass. This put the 

 bees to flight, and in another moment 

 they were tumbling down at the en- 

 trance of their own hive. 



The bees under the grass were en- 

 tering the same hive they had i.ssued 

 from only 10 or 15 minutes before. No 

 change had taken place in the sur- 

 roundings except the buncli of grass 

 over the hive. There were over a 

 hundred hives in the apiarj'. The 

 ground is level, and the hives are in 

 rows about 11 feet apart, and 9 feet 

 apart in the rows. One hive faces to 

 the east, and tlie next one to the south, 

 and I see no excuse whatever, for 

 those bees trying to crawl down 

 through this bunch of grass, except the 

 loud humming noise beneath it. 



I have given three examples, one 

 each of drone, queen and worker-bees 

 being attracted by sound. These 

 three instances are only a few of many 

 very similar instances that have come 

 under my observation during the past 

 twelve years. I will now ofler some 

 experiments that I am confident will 

 enable any one to prove to his entire 

 satisfaction that bees do hear. 



Take a comb with adhering bees 

 from any hive of gentle bees. Be 

 careful not to excite or disturb the 

 bees. Hold tlie comb before you. 

 Now sing, whistle, hollow or blow a 

 horn, sy as to make any kind of a pro- 

 longed tone of a musical nature, and 

 of a reasonaljlc degree of loudiiess,and 

 nearly every bee on the comb will stop 

 to listen. The effect is so striking that 

 no one can doubt it. Do not be afraid 

 of being stung, unless you blow your 



breath upon them. When the noise 

 ceases, they resume business as if 

 nothing had taken place. I have tried 

 these experiments nianj' times during 

 the past ten years, and I know that the 

 bees will listen wliile you sing. 



I have obser\ ed the same efl'ect from 

 the pijiing of virgin queens, wlien 

 nearly all the bees of a fair si/cd col- 

 ony would listen, wliile tlie (piecn was 

 piping. Please to test tliis matter, and 

 report througli the Bee Journal. 



Liverpool, Ills. 



LEG-ISLATION. 



A Canadian's Views About IVec- 

 tar being Public Property. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



BY DR. C. C. MILLER. 



Friend Newman : — I enclose a pri- 

 vate letter from one of the prominent 

 bee-keepers of Canada, and I think 

 that I betray no confidence in allow- 

 ing you to print that part of it which 

 is of public interest, and .shows some 

 careful thinking. I am glad to know 

 that I am not so entirelj' alone as I 

 formerly considered myself, in think- 

 ing that soini-thing ought to be done. 

 After reading the article of Mr. 

 McNeill, on page 586, and the com- 

 ments thereon, I am strongly Impressed 

 that bee-keepers will begin to see the 

 possibility of conflict arising at any 

 and all points, and that certain laws 

 that might perhaps be easily had for 

 the asking, would forever set them 

 free from the danger of litigation that 

 would come without the asking, and 

 require heavy fees before its departure. 

 But here is the letter from Canada : 



" I fully believe in such legislation as 

 will enable a bee-keeper, by paying a 

 reasonable sum of money, to control a 

 certain territory. It seems to me that 

 it would be a great mistake, on your 

 part, to admit that the nectar does not 

 belong to the land-owner. The farmer 

 owns the land, pajs the taxes, culti- 

 vates it, fences it, and, in fact, he is 

 the "lord" of the soil, and I know 

 enough of farming to know that his 

 labor is no mean task, and I confess it 

 would be veiT difficult to convince me 

 that the whole grass, or rather clover 

 crop, including the roots, stalks, leaves, 

 flowers — yea, and even the very nectar 

 in the blossoms, do not belong to the 

 owner of the soil. 



"All and singular, most surely, are 

 the personal property of the land- 

 owner. But at the same time it is 

 quite as clear to nij' mind that if all 

 farmers or land-owners, if you please, 

 should undertake to keep bees, and 

 gather each his own share of that nec- 

 tar, each and every one, or nearly so. 



