92 Beekeeping 
in the cellar, provided conditions within the cellar are 
correct. 
Bees wintering in the open fly out whenever the outside 
temperature will permit, and after a considerable period of 
confinement many will fly out when it is so cold that they 
are unable to return. On these winter flights the feces 
are voided, consequently they are of the highest value to a 
colony wintered out of doors. 
While numerous other points concerning the activities 
of bees in winter are left to be discussed in the chapter on 
wintering, it is evident from what has been said that bees 
are highly sensitive to changes in temperature, and that 
they have a wonderful ability to overcome the adverse 
conditions of winter by the generation of heat. It is to be 
noticed especially that they usually do not warm the whole 
hive or cavity but confine heat production to the cluster. 
It might therefore be concluded that a hive is actually little 
protection for them in winter but it should be remembered 
that this protects them from wind, rain and snow. They 
further seal the hive with propolis to make the top water- 
and even air-tight and some races contract the entrance 
with propolis. The practical bearing of these facts forms 
one of the most vital problems of the northern beekeeper 
and the discussion of this subject from the standpoint of 
practice forms a later chapter. 
