On Sun, 29 Dec 1996, Stan Sandler <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>I posted a question recently in "solstice and bees" wondering what cues
>prompted the resumption of brood rearing.  No one seemed to have any
>opinions on the subject.  I will try to rephrase the question in hope that I
>can encourage someone discussion.
>
 
>I also am curious as to what the situation is with bees in other locations
>where there may not be a winter.  If there is a dry and wet season do the
>bees start to raise a lot of brood in the period of nectar shortage at the
>end of the dry season so that they will be strong when the flowers pop after
>the wet season starts?  Someone in the southern US once posted that their
>main flow was in the fall with not too much before that.  I wonder if their
>bees still built up like mad in the spring the way ours do here, or whether
>it was delayed.
>
>Happy New Year
>Stan
>
When I was keeping Caucasian bees in California the queens prety much quit
laying in October. Here in Hawaii they do not quit at all. They slow down around
September or October and stqrt their buildup in November or December so they are
reqdy for the Lehua flow that begins in January. The pollen comes in every day
and so does a little honey. With no winter we don't have to worry about winter
stores.
The tropical swarming syndrome is developing here. The swarms come mostly in
late spring but they could show up any time and they can all survive since they
don't need large stores.
Race has somwthing to do with how fast bees build up but climate is probably a
bigger factor. They do not build up as fast in California as they do in the
North. California's honey flow starts in January and they will reach peak at the
end of March for the Orange flow. Then they are apt to stay about the same until
fall.
The originalquestion is a very good one but I wonder if we will ever find a
complete expalantion for all of the decisions the bees seem to make.