>
> I'm surprised nobody has mentioned seeing overwintered drones
> in their hives.

One of Steve Taber's favorite stories is about the time he challenged Dr.
Farrar about drones in the winter.  Steve adamantly stated bees kick out ALL
drones in the fall and there are NO WINTER DRONES.  As he tells the story,
Dr. Farrar in response assigned him the task (Steve was a grad student at
the time) of going out to a Minnesota hive in the dead of winter, pull apart
a cluster of bees and count the drones.  Dr. Farrar sacrificed a colony to
prove to his student that bees keep drones around, even in winter.  I wonder
how the bees choose which drones to keep and which to evict?  But I never
state there are NO WINTER DRONES.  In fact, I challenged that assertion on
my master beekeeper exam, and won!

Aaron Morris - I think, therefore I bee!

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and  other info ---
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::