Hello All

I am presently putting together some documentation for a lecture on Suburban
Beekeeping which I am to give early next year. This will be my first lecture
in beekeeping.

I remember coming across a statement that the aggressiveness of a hive
varies inter alia with the number of guard bees posted at any one time. Thus
if the size of the entrance is reduced, fewer guard bees are deployed and
therefore there are fewer stingers ready to pounce.

Can anybody confirm this assertion or otherwise?. I am also interested in
trying to find out how many guard bees are deployed on average say per
centimetre/inch  of entrance space, as I like to put numbers on things if at
all possible.

Also if anybody has lecture notes on this subject which he/she would be
willing to share with me, this would be invaluable assistance for which I
would be most grateful. In return I will send my efforts when they are
completed.

Thanks as always for any help

Sincerely

Tom Barrett
49 South Park, Foxrock
Dublin 18
Ireland
Tel + 353 1 289 5269
Fax + 353 1 289 9940