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Wed, 7 Feb 1996 08:28:00 -0800 |
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Further to Allen Dick's comment about bees working dark Ross Rounds
better than white:
1) To clarify, Allen: The dark parts you refer to: This is the outer
structure that guides the bees to finish the combs consistently at the
same thickness, right? The foundation, and even the plastic rings in
contact with the foundation, are the same in each case (plain wax and
clear plastic, respectively).
2) at the recent Amer Beekeeping Federation meeting in Portland, at a
panel discussion of wood + wax vs plastic frames, Bob Brandi of
California mentioned his experience with plastic foundation made of
different colours (colors in his case):
dark plastic foundations were consistently drawn first, in a super
containing a selection of colours
they had some foundation made in black plastic: it was well
accepted, but wax would separate from the plastic when supers were
brought into the hot room (the foundation got too hot?)
they have compromised by having the foundation made in green,
combining the advantages of the 2 points above.
I wonder, what is the physics behind the bees' recognition of these
colours in the "dark". Perhaps one of our members familiar with heat
conduction, radiation etc can tell us.
what is the biological advantage of the bees preference (is it as
simple as the universal human quest for warm fuzzies?
From the practical beekeeping point of view, how much does it
matter? If bees don't have the choice, will they be more easily induced
to build comb faster in all dark foundation (or the opposite in white
foundation?) I suppose the observations of plain plastic vs waxed
plastic foundation might apply (ie it depends more on conditions than
foundation: lots of young bees + good honeyflow + hot weather = comb
building)
One thing the pannel could not comment on: is there a difference in bees
winter success on plastic vs wax foundation (everyone on the panel
wintered their bees in the warm south). There was a comment about
plastic not conducting heat as well as wax (meant as a criticism of
plastic, though it seems it should be an advantage) but no one had a
strong opinion. What has been your experience, Allen, Jean-Pierre?
Kerry Clark, Apiculture Specialist
B.C. Ministry of Agriculture
1201 103 Ave
Dawson Creek B.C.
V1G 4J2 CANADA Tel (604) 784-2225 fax (604) 784-2299
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