Paul Cronshaw wrote: >I noted an interesting thing this weekend...... > >I split a hive three weeks ago, old queen went into the new split and a >queen cell was left below. I used a double screen division board and faced >the new entrance to the side. I left the split on for about a week... >noting some good activity. > >I then moved the split to another apiary over 2 miles away and left it >there for two weeks. Today I moved it back to another spot in the original >apiary. > >Right away I noted lots of bees buzzing around the side of the original >site. What a memory these bees have. > >I thought that 2 weeks would erase their little computer minds. :) Not so!! > >Anyone else have a comment on bee memory to locations? Norm Gary covered some of that subject in his chapter of THE HIVE AND THE HONEY BEE (Dadant & Sons, 1992, Chapter 8). Two other very pertinent publications on this matter apply, as follows: 1) Patrick H. Wells. 1973. Honey bees. Chapter 9 in INVERTEBRATE LEARNING.. Plenum Press, N.Y. 2) Peggy S.M. Hill, Patrick H. Wells, and Harrington Wells. 1997. Spontaneous flower constancy and learning in honey bees as a function of colour. ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR. (54:615-627). Adrian Adrian M. Wenner (805) 893-2838 (UCSB office) Ecol., Evol., & Marine Biology (805) 893-8062 (UCSB FAX) Univ. of Calif., Santa Barbara (805) 963-8508 (home office & FAX) Santa Barbara, CA 93106 *********************************************************************** * "...scientists are paradoxically resistant to change, even when * * confronted with evidence that virtually demands change of them." * * * * Barber, 1960 (in Greenberg, 1983) * ***********************************************************************