At the Hive Entrance.pdf - BioBees

Observation
Explanation
stops egg laying and the bees stop feeding her. Several
hours pass before the colony resumes its normal activity.
If this happens on a day of nectar flow, these disturbances
cause, as we have already mentioned
elsewhere, the loss of many hundreds of grams of
nectar. Beekeepers who fiddle in their colonies, often
without good reason, should always keep these considerations
in mind. Certain manipulations such as
removing the building frames, adding frames or working
without touching the nest, are not considered
great disturbances which can cause bad results.
Many bees return white as if
covered in flour. At the same
time they bring back white pollen.
A field of poppies is within their range of activity.
When the poppy flowers, the nectar flow is nearing its
end, say the beekeepers of the Sudetenland, where
this oleaginous plant is cultivated in an intensive way
for many purposes (principally for the bakery trade).
The poppy is, amongst the flowers of the garden and
fields, the one that gives the most pollen. It flowers at
a time when nature offers few resources. The wild
poppy found in the field (corn-poppy) gives a blueblack
pollen.
Artificial swarms bring back a
great deal of pollen.
They are in order. It is not worth looking to see if
there is a queen, as such an examination would be
detrimental. These rapid flights and the intense harvesting
of pollen always indicate the presence of a
good queen. However, if the opposite is happening
the colony must be examined without hesitation.
Bees black as coal, remarkably
thin and with no hair, but capable
of flying return to the
colony. The number generally
increases from day to day. The
other bees do not appear to be
hostile to them, or to push
them around on the alighting
board or at the hive entrance.
This colony is affected by the paralysis typical during
honeydew flow (paratyphus). This disease usually
breaks out between 15 th of May and 15 th of July.
When one examines such a colony, one is often surprised
at the large number of bees born in this abnormal
condition.
One also notices that normal bees continue to be born
in the colony. Those bees and drones that are affected
give the impression of being wet. Dr. Dreher has been
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