Hello All,
Because half this post was about foraging I thought I might add the opinion
of a few researchers about bee learning ability & foraging.
Almost all types of classical learning (adaptation,habituation,conditioned
reflexes) are found in honey bees.  Notably absent is the ability to learn
by the intuitive,cognitive ,or creative thought process used by humans.  In
other words ,bees *apparently* have no imagination or foresight.   Learning
occurs only within the context of innate behavioral patterns.  A bee cannot
learn to do something completely new, something no other bee has ever done
before, such as constructing honeycomb twice as large as normal(Bermant &
Gary 1996).

Observations on field bees at work *suggest* that a forager cannot sense the
presence of nectar in a given blossom without inserting her proboscis. When
flowers are open in structure,and the nectar exposed ,there is a possibility
that bees can detect nectar by reflected ultraviolet light(Thorp 1975).

Many theories abound in beekeeping.  Its almost impossible to prove many
foraging theories.  Hence the words *apparently* and *suggest* are allways
used.  Hence the difference of opinion among researchers with other
researchers and beekeepers with other beekeepers. Maybe at times between
researchers and beekeepers!
Sincerely,
Bob Harrison
Odessa,Missouri