Swarming.—As already explained (pp. 7, 8) a hive will "swarm" when an old queen finds that other queens are being nurtured in the hive. In such a case she calls forth as many of her adherents as will follow her and goes out to found a new community. Oftentimes the site of the new home is definitely settled beforehand in some unoccupied hive, and in such cases scout workers will have prepared and cleansed the hive some days in advance. The passing to and fro of these pioneers will sometimes give the owner of the empty hive the idea that he has bees working there. Generally, however, the swarm issues from the hive without any definite objective and flies on until the queen settles, when her retinue of workers form a cluster around her.
As a rule it is an easy matter to tell when the bees are swarming, for they rush pell-mell in a tumultuous stream from the hive, and fly round and round, and in and out, hundreds being on the wing together, taking the appearance of a living cloud. They are perfectly docile and will allow the spectator to stand among them provided they are not provoked. Of course this is easily done: the mere getting entangled in the hair of the onlooker is sufficient to rouse their anger. Any symptoms of nervousness, too, seem to become apparent at once to the bees, and perspiration, again, is objectionable to them. But an expert bee-handler may lift a swarm with his hands and suffer no ill, for so long as they are not crushed the bees will not resent the handling.
It is seldom that a first swarm issues from the hive other than when the weather is warm and the sun shining. Generally it is between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. that swarming takes place. First swarms are usually the largest, for when the joyful hum of the rising swarm sounds forth many of the bees from adjoining hives will be drawn to join the swarm and are received in a friendly manner.
Virgin Swarms.—The bees of a swarm will often follow a virgin queen when she goes out to seek a mate, the bees apparently thinking that if she is lost they will die. It is therefore advisable that a hive which is known to contain a virgin swarm should have the entrance blocked up so that only one or two bees can pass in or out at a time. This may be widened after the queen has been mated.
The Treatment of Swarms will be found explained on page 68.
The Scent of the Bee.—Every novice in bee-keeping should make a point of acquiring knowledge by practical experience on this wonderful point in connection with bees, for it plays a most important part in the success of bee-keeping. Not only does each hive diffuse a different scent from that of its neighbour—even though the nectar may be gathered by the bees from the same source—but the scent of each hive may vary according to the work that is going on within it. Each individual bee, too, can diffuse a varying scent to suit its circumstances. An expert bee-keeper can generally tell from the scent immediately he opens his hive what reception he is likely to meet with, for even our native bees are seldom found to be docile in the midst or towards the end of a honey-flow.
When bees are swarming they emit quite a distinct scent, which probably accounts for the friendly reception accorded at that time to bees from other hives. When a stranger approaches a hive, or if the bees are disturbed, it will be noticed that those on the alighting board elevate their abdomens and fan vigorously with their wings—with the result that other members of the hive rush to the scene. It is true that the sound of their wing movements is different from that caused by the ventilating fanning, but there is no question that an alarm scent is emitted from the abdomen and diffused by the vigorous movement of the wings. In the same manner the sting of the bee when discharged emits a peculiar scent which has the effect of rousing other bees to anger, as though to avenge the death of their fellow-worker. The expert bee-keeper well knows the scent of the sting even though he may be immune from its effect. It is well to note, by the way, that cross-bred bees as a rule are very quarrelsome and extremely sensitive, and are often dangerous on this account, for they are very free with their sting.
It seems evident that when a bee is frightened she loses her distinctive scent, for driven bees, when they have nothing to fight for, will unite peacefully. And I have known bees of the same hive fight among themselves in a moment of panic, thus affording evidence that the scent of the community has been destroyed for the time, precluding the members of it from recognising their fellows under the stress of the fright.
The scent of the queen is different from that of the workers. This can be noticed especially in the case of a swarm, for workers will often be seen "retrieving" the place over which the queen has passed, even though the trail may be broken: should they fail to find her they will often cluster and die. Because of this it is never advisable to handle a queen, for the bees will notice the change of scent caused thereby and often will kill a queen they do not own; to stranger drones, however, they raise no objection during a honey-flow.
Honey.—It should be clearly understood that, contrary to the assertion of the poet, bees do not "gather honey all the day, from every opening flower." Honey is essentially a product of the bee from the nectar provided by the flowers as an inducement to the visitation of bees and other insects—not for the benefit of the bee but to serve the purposes of the flowers themselves of cross-fertilisation. (See Chapter on "Flowers and Bees," page 53.) The nectar is assimilated by the bee and regurgitated in the form of honey.
Honeycomb.—The honeycomb is doubtless one of the greatest marvels of the bee community. In its architecture and workmanship it forms, indeed, one of the greatest wonders in the whole realm of nature. With its multitudinous hexagonal cells, a honeycomb presents a continuous source of delight; it is so constructed that not a single atom of space is wasted and so designed that the minimum of material is used. Let it be remembered that the honeycomb, primarily, is intended to serve as a nest for the offspring of the queen—each cell to be a separate cradle for the product of the egg placed therein.
As a rule, as we have noted, the cells are six-sided; the exceptions are the queen cells—which are acorn-shaped—and the intermediate cells which form buffers as it were between the worker and drone cells. The latter are always built on the outside edge of the combs. The worker cells are the smallest, and, although the bees hatched from new combs are usually larger than those from old ones, the difference is but slight. The reason for this is that as each bee is hatched it leaves behind in the cell the cocoon in which its metamorphosis was accomplished, and thus diminishes to that extent the size of the cell.
Bees-wax.—The wax of which the cells are composed is produced from the body of the bee itself. It forms in thin plates underneath the abdomen, these plates being kneaded by the jaws into the required consistency and form. When comb-making is in progress the bees cluster together in festoons, very similar in appearance to a swarm. It is, of course, an exceedingly slow process, and the modern bee-keeper, to expedite matters in this direction, assists the bees by giving them ready-made foundation on which to build their cells. Fortunately the bees have proved amenable to this "hustling" process and are thus able to devote a larger part of their short life to the more remunerative work—from the bee-keeper's point of view—of honey-producing.
Chyle Food.—As before stated, this is the rich substance with which the queen is fed, and the worker grub indulged in for a short period. It is regurgitated from the chyle or second stomach of the young or nurse bees. All authorities agree that the power to produce the food gradually diminishes after the insect is a fortnight old. It follows, then, either that the young bees have the power to withhold the supply during a period of rest, or the power to assimilate it is acquired by the older bees, in proportion to their age and the ordinary food they consume, during the period of compulsory-retirement in winter. This semi-hibernation period varies in length in different parts of the country, but in some cases it must last for at least three months, between the date when the last eggs were laid and that when the queen resumes egg-laying again in earnest. Chyle food has a thick, milky-white appearance, an acid flavour, and quickly congeals if exposed to the air. Probably on account of its being fed to the infant bees one of its popular names is "pap" and another "bee's-milk."
Propolis.—This is a substance produced by the bees from the gum which exudes from buds and trees, or the wax given off by some grasses. Propolis emits a wholesome smell and is usually bitter to the taste. It is used by the bees to plug up any holes or cracks in the walls of the hive and to fasten the supers, lifts, frames, and sections together, and also forms their natural disinfectant. Although methylated spirit is violently disliked by bees, yet some forms of spirit varnish are very attractive to them, probably yielding something towards the production of propolis.
Some bees produce propolis to excess and it then becomes a nuisance, for hives in which such a condition exists are always more difficult to work. The queens from these hives should never be used for rearing purposes. It will be found that foreign bees as a rule produce more propolis than the native breeds. Propolis always serves to attract bees, especially after it has been warmed before a fire for a few minutes; it then becomes very sticky. It is often used to entice bees to artificial food in early spring to stimulate brood-rearing before natural pollen becomes abundant. This is done by scattering artificial pollen among shavings or chaff, and generally serves its purpose.
Old quilts plastered with propolis are used by unscrupulous bee-keepers to attract swarms from neighbouring hives.