■ 46 A Modern Bee-Farm 



PALESTINES. 



Thgse are, perhaps, more yellow and beautiful than 

 Cyprians, but can hardly be recommended, as they develop 

 fertile workers to a greater extent, use more propolis than 

 any others yet narried, and while being handled have a, very 

 disagreeable habit of biting the fingers. These have often 

 been confused with Syrians, but the two are quite distinct : 

 Palestines come from the Holy Land proper, while the others 

 are found farther 'north, in the Lebanon mountains. How- 

 ever, very successful results have been secured from a large 

 apiary of these bees, in their native country, by Mr. Balden- 

 sperger, of Jaffa. 



Other Varieties 



have been brought forward from time to time, including South 

 African, Minorcan, and Punic or Tunisian. The first named 

 are merely hybrids varying (in the same colony) from three 

 yellow bands to almost black in colour, with the usual lighter 

 bars of whitish hair between each segment of the body, in this 

 case of a peculiar ashen-white colour. The queens are almost . 

 black, while the workers are smaller than those of any other 

 race cultivated. A number of undesirable traits, apart from 

 being hybrids, prevented their general introduction. 



The Minorcans were freely offered for sale in this country, 

 but these again, though similar to our native race, had no 

 merits of sufficient value to claim the attention of practical 

 beekeepers, and hence gained no favour. 



The Tunisian is another of the darker varieties which, 

 however, has recently come in for some notoriety, through 

 some unexplained commendations accorded it by an advertiser 

 in the Bee Journals. The race has been proved inferior, to 

 our native variety, and Mr. F. Benton, who first ' sent out 

 queens of the kind from Tunis, has the following to say about 

 them : — 



" I always called them by the most natural name — Tuni- 

 sian, and never thought best to strain after something a bit 



