REGARDING RE>Holes in foundation Jim Moore wrote: < I read somewhere,(an old ('87?) Bee Culture?), an opinion concerning the fact that brood chamber foundation with holes is better overall for the bees. It was in relation to wintering and providing easier cluster migration from frame to frame. The bees do not have to go to the edges of the frames to move from one frame to the next in very cold weather. Other than the cells lost to the holes is there a downside?.... Do the removable frames provide more "order" for my convenience at some hidden expense to the bees? Would providing a hole or two be worth considering when introducing new foundation?> I doubt that it would do any good at all to put holes in foundation. Bees will do what they want to with it, including repairing holes they find or making new ones if they need them. I say this because occasionally I get mice into stored supers or lower brood chambers during the winter. They do a nasty job cutting huge holes for their nests. But when I put these frames back on the hives, each between two good frames, invariably the bees do a great job of repairing them good as new. And sometimes, in the middle of perfectly good combs, the bees decide that they need to get to the other side in a hurry, and cut their own hole. The major downside of having extra holes in brood comb is that of giving more hiding places for queen cells. The bees love these little niches for this purpose. Ted Fischer