>So here's a question: for races of bees that evolved near the equator, there wouldn't be enough daylength change for them to evolve a perception of difference.  That wouldn't be selected for unless they lived at higher latitudes.  So would strains of bees bred in California still respond so well to the daily change in photoperiod when placed into hives in Canada?

We are about 27.5 degrees south and we used to send queen bees to Canada in April and May, our autumn (fall).  They arrived in Canada in their spring.  From all accounts the bees breed from those queens adjusted to the opposite photoperiod i.e. decreasing when leaving Australia then increasing in Canada.

Interestingly we used to supply hybrid queens for Canada i.e. caucasian or carniolan mated with Italian drones.  This was because we were told the bees had the Italian trait in spring i.e. they breed fast and the caucasian or carniolan trait on fall when they reduced brood rearing.

Here photoperiod does not necessarily affect brood production.  We can have bees swarming in winter, before the shortest day in the year, in the far west of Queensland.  Randy you will remember those hives we showed you in June, our winter, that we breeding well and producing extractable honey.  For us I think conditions have a greater effect than photoperiod.  Around our place we can have hives go broodless in winter then the next winter they are breeding drones.  Again all climate.

Trevor Weatherhead
Australia

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