Hi all
There have been a lot of statements made in the past decade that winter losses are much higher than in the good ole days. This runs counter to the facts, as evidenced by the following from 100 years ago. 

> The annual winter loss of bees in Wisconsin ranges from 10 to 20 per cent, some years running much higher. The main cause is poor stores that contain foreign substances such as gums or dextrins which can not be digested by the bees. The honey bee can digest only certain foods, such as invert sugars, dextrose, and levulose. In order to rid itself of fecal matter, the bee must fly. If the winter stores of honey are of purest quality there is little indigestible material, and the bees can remain confined for six months without difficulty. If the indigest ible material is abundant however the intestines become filled to the point where the bees suffer from so-called dysentery, fly out in the cellar, and are lost. In one man's cellar last year, where 160 colonies were wintered, between seven and eight bushels of dead bees were removed in the spring.

New Farm Facts: Annual Report of the Director, 1919-1920. Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Wisconsin, Madison

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