Hi  all

Peter said...

> Interesting that you use the word rarely.  Many books tell you to look in
> these clusters of  bees (I also puff or touch them lightly with a finger),
> but I cannot say that I recall ever finding a queen under the mass of
> workers.

Some clusters have a queen others do not. There is a difference in shape...
The 'have queen' clusters are more compact and more spherical in shape,
whereas the 'have not' clusters are more 'flying saucer' or 'galaxy' shaped.

You will sometimes find scalloped, polished areas on the face of the comb
that these 'have not' type of clusters form in.

You may also see this scalloping  around some queencells that are formed on
the surface of comb.

I reckon there are similarities with 'queen balling' but there is not the
frenzy and tightness that occurs if they are balling.


Best Regards & 73s, Dave Cushman... G8MZY
Beekeeping & Bee Breeding Website
Email: [log in to unmask] or  [log in to unmask]
http://website.lineone.net/~dave.cushman & http://www.dave-cushman.net

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