On Mon, 28 Oct 1996 20:46:15 -0800 apis <[log in to unmask]> writes: >RICHARD BARNES wrote: >> >> Fellow Bee-L'ers, I have a question? >> >> How many different patterns of colors do you find in your hives? >>I ask the above question because these bees have many different patterns of stripes. Some are the standard 6 striped italians, >> some have only very light stripes but the stinger end of the bee is >dark >> nearly a third up the thorax. I even have some bees with no >noticable >> stripes just what at eye site appears to be a yellow bee the drones >are >> solid dark and about 10% of the workers are solid dark. The bees >seem to >> all be getting along. This sounds like a queen that has mated with different strains of drones. I have not always requeened with the same kind of bees, and when one of mine supersedes, it is an integrated hive! I can see italians, carniolans, and whatnot. The cross-strain hybrids seem to be stronger, other things being equal. Gerry and the other Visels at [log in to unmask]