" the sugar would be metabolized and released largely as co2 and h2o, the additional water in the syrup evaporated."

The sugar consumed would be nearly 100% metabolized and end up as you say.  But, there are other factors also.  Are temps such that the bees maintain hydration during the trip?  During warm weather (not all that warm either, today was a high of 55 and they were hauling water like mad) I see my bees hauling a great deal of water, I presume to maintain hydration.  The water in the sugar syrup might not be enough to maintain hydration.  Or maybe it is?  I do not know.  Probably depends a lot on shipping temperatures.  Also during shipping some stored protein is metabolized to mainly carbon dioxide and water.  This loss of protein is not made up until in the hive and fed pollen sub or they forage for pollen.  So, any protein metabolized would be weight loss.  More protein would be metabolized as shipping temps went up.  Seems to me reasonable to expect some weight loss on shipping even if you weigh and include dead bees.  The amount of weight loss would increase with increased shipping time and increase with increased shipping temperatures I would think based on a simple view of both chem and biology.  Both time and particularly temperature probably would be non linear with respect to weight losses observed making it difficult to determine what final weight data means with respect to original package weight.

Dick

" Any discovery made by the human mind can be explained in its essentials to the curious learner."  Professor Benjamin Schumacher talking about teaching quantum mechanics to non scientists.   "For every complex problem there is a solution which is simple, neat and wrong."  H. L. Mencken

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html