I've heard of feral colonies as far north as Prince George BC (pre-varroa) and we get the odd story from the Anchorage Ak of folks finding feral colonies occasionally. When I did my Bee Weather/Climate review, Anchorage and Prince George actually had very similar climates and winters. Not sure about how far north folks find them in the Canadian prairies. The other point is where did those bees originate from. Up where I am at our honey bee colony densities are extremely low and only a handful of swarms escape the beekeepers. Though we are getting more of those beehavers who kit up and then wonder why there are no queens in their colonies. I wonder if a relationship exists between the number of feral colonies in a region (post-varroa) and the number of beehavers (folks who just don't manage swarms or don't care). The largest trees here would also be cottonwoods (faster growing) as a 10"-12" pine or spruce is anywhere from 80 to 120 years old. 

On the wintering (insulation study), my gut and early results tell me that a single brood hive (insulated for the climate) will have the best performance over winter and in spring. The varroa load is lower (bee population vs a double), the single's hive volume can be more easily maintained thermally. Also the early winter die off of the last foragers really drop the bee numbers just prior to getting into the colder winter. Many beekeepers (including me) are fooled by perceived large bee populations late fall where a large portion of them are actually hive bound foragers due to the colder August Ts here. The only way to know is to track brood nest progression via inspections (if weather permits) or hive monitoring (brood nest Ts). Back to the singles, they really explode in late winter/early spring with their brood rearing where I can either choose to double them for the June flow or split to maintain my numbers. Single hive management however requires close attention in the late summer/fall to ensure adequate space for winter bee rearing but also ensure enough time to build the winter honey stores. 

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