BEE-L Archives

Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

BEE-L@COMMUNITY.LSOFT.COM

Options: Use Monospaced Font
Show Text Part by Default
Show All Mail Headers

Message: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Topic: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Author: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]

Print Reply
Subject:
From:
Chris Slade <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Sun, 20 Mar 2011 18:16:46 -0400
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (25 lines)
-----Original Message-----
From: Bob Darrell [log in to unmask]

 What would DCA's look like if you saw one? 
 
There's one at Gormanston and every year at the FIBKA Summer School somebody (it was Karl Showler but Ruary Rudd  or Micheal Mac GiollaCoda has done it lately) walks around the school golf course and hurley pitches with a fishing rod to which is attached a phial with queen substance and when the right spot is reached it is buzzed by a comet of drones. Karl's supply originated from Colin Butler who first described queen substance, but I don't know what is used now.


The 19th century author Richard  Jefferies  in 'Bevis, the Story of a Boy' (which I first read over half a century ago and must do again) mentions the 'midsummer hum' and I reckon that this was likely a drone congregation area.

I expect you've all read Beowulf Cooper's book and seen the diagrams of various types of DCA.  The one that I think I have found was on a wooded hilltop (Lewesdon Hill, the highest point in Dorset) where the midsummer hum was so loud as almost to be intrusive but the cause was lost above the tree cover.

Chris




             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html

Guidelines for posting to BEE-L can be found at:
http://honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm

ATOM RSS1 RSS2