>>3.  Is it a reasonable hypothesis that bees kept in more built-up  
environments may be at greater risk of bringing in non-pollen?

I don't know about non-pollen but here in southern NY, we had another weekend with temps in the low 60-ies.  Lots of bees bringing in loads of green, orange, yellow pollen.  We walked the neighborhood and saw crocus starting to bloom here and there.  There are several old, tall willows but their tops are too high to see if they are blooming...  One thing great about built-up areas is that there are many sheltered, southern spots near home stuctures for plants to come into bloom sooner than usual.  The bees are great about sniffing those out.

I have not seen my bees not use the pollen they store.  As the season progresses it all gets eaten up.  However, if fall pollen ends up outside of or below the cluster, it can spoil during the winter.  I have seen bees cut whole sections of such pollen out.

Waldemar
Long Island, NY

-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l for rules, FAQ and  other info ---