On Wed, 28 Nov 2007 20:37:08 -0500, Peter Borst <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>>Here's a great chance for a scientist/math major type to chime in and prove
>that larger bees hold more moisture per unit of mass.
>
>Well, that's not me. But maybe you'd like to try to explain why A. m.
>lamarckii (Egypt) and A. m. yemenitica (all across African from West Sahara
>to Saudi Arabia) are the smallest bees and the bees of the colder climates
>(A. m. carnica, etc.) are the biggest? And don't tell me it's because they
>were artificially enlarged by honeycomb foundation. I don't buy that one.

I am not the scientist/math major type that is going to completely explain
this.  However the size differences of warm climate and cold climate bees is
probably due to heat conservation abilities.  Animals in general, especially
mammals, are often larger in cold climates.  You can often see this by
looking at subspecies of mammals that range from warm to cold climates.  You
will often see that as the climate cools the subspecies becomes larger. 
Larger bodies allow for better heat retention while smaller bodies make it
easier to get rid of extra heat.  Back to the bees, larger bees are likely
more efficient at maintaining cluster warmth in colder climates than smaller
bees.  On the other hand smaller bees are likely better at remaining cooler
in warmer climates.  Hope this was helpful.

Noah

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