Bill,
 
   Honey is 18 or so percent water, and often their problem is getting
rid of the excess.  (It freezes on the inner covers of outdoor hives if
they are not ventilated at the top, and can run down the front of the
inside.)  I always keep a quart jar of syrup on my indoor obs hive, and
the one from November just got emptied, so they must not need too much
extra.  They are just starting to really build up the patch of brood, and
are eating more honey/pollen.
 
Gerry and the other Visels at
[log in to unmask]
Winnebago, Illinois, USA
 
 
On Mon, 17 Feb 1997 14:21:00 -0500 "William J. Morrison"
<[log in to unmask]> writes:           <<<snip<<<<
> Now I am
>wondering how an overwintering  colony of honey bees keeps from
>dehydrating in nature.  Do they recycle condensed water from the combs
>surrounding the cluster?  Anyone have any thoughts?
>
>Bill Morrison
>Dept of Biology
>Shippensburg Univ
>Shippensburg, Pennsylvania USA
>(Southcentral Pennsylvania)
>