>    Further to Allen Dick's comment about bees working dark Ross
>    Rounds better than white:
>
>    1) To clarify, Allen: The dark parts you refer to: This is the
>    outer structure that guides the bees to finish the combs
>    consistently at the same thickness, right? The foundation, and
>    even the plastic rings in contact with the foundation, are the
>    same in each case (plain wax and clear plastic, respectively).
>
<etc.>
 
Correct.  Actually the rings which surround the section and form
sides of the retail container are somewhere between clear and a
cloudy white. Immediately behind them is the solid frame that
supports all, and can be white or chocolate brown.
 
 
>    I wonder, what is the physics behind the bees' recognition of
>    these colours in the "dark". Perhaps one of our members familiar
>    with heat conduction, radiation etc can tell us.
 
<etc.>
 
That's what I want to know.
 
Maybe they can detect absorption and reflection of the infra red
spectrum (which we experience as 'heat').
 
We can - crudely - but our perceptions are using our skin which lacks
directional resolution and imaging capability.
 
Can bees detect an amount of their own heat returned from objects
and use it in an analagous way to how 'visible light' is used by us
and bees - to 'see'?
 
And, if so, can they resolve these reflections into useful images -
somewhat as we do with the visible light spectrum?  Do they have an
'eye' that sees at these frequencies?  As I recall, their vision does
not have any focusing ability, and yet they are able to use the
mosaic images they receive to navigate better than many persons.
 
Perhaps there are areas either the bee eye itself, or cells on the
body, or even on the antennae that are able to generate output
similar - using infra red (heat) - to what the bee eyes do
using what we regard as visible light - and provide sufficient
information to allow the bees to 'see' in their home.
 
If so they *can* 'see' in the darkness of the hive, because to them it
is not dark, but lighted by their own bodies and the internal
radiation from the hive boxes when heated by the sun or ambient air.
 
If we were to establish that were true, then the question is: are
transparent plastic boxes transparent to infra red?
 
If the plastic is transparent at infra red frequencies, then the bees
can indeed 'see' the amount of space in the next box as clearly as if
there were no divider.
 
I've always wondered that they would have evolved to live strictly
by feel and scent inside a dark hive and be able to accomplish what
they do.
 
>    One thing the pannel could not comment on: is there a difference
>    in bees winter success on plastic vs wax foundation (everyone on
>    the panel wintered their bees in the warm south). There was a
>    comment about plastic not conducting heat as well as wax (meant
>    as a criticism of plastic, though it seems it should be an
>    advantage) but no one had a strong opinion. What has been your
>    experience, Allen, Jean-Pierre?
 
I haven't any observations, *but* I was planning to buy 10,000 Pierco
frames and strangely enough, was going to have them made in dark
brown simply because I hate the look of white frames! (Old
beekeeper's Instinct?  They will colour them to taste (no charge) if
you order 10,000 or more.
 
I have been having misgivings because I was wondering about the
appearance to me of white comb on dark foundation.  Glad you dropped
by with your comments.
 
I don't know what I think of green.