THE WINTER SLEEP
During the summer the bees work only with the idea of storing away
sufficient honey to last them during the dark days of winter, when
there are no flowers. In the tropics, where perpetual summer reigns,
the bees live as it were from hand to mouth, and do not store nearly
so much honey as those bees which live in climes where the summer is
followed by a long winter.
When autumn comes, and the flowers vanish, the bees gather round the
queen on the combs of the hive; we see some of them in Plate XXV. The
builders block up the doorway with wax until only a narrow passage is
left, just large enough to allow them to travel in and out. This is
done to keep out the cold of winter, for then it is necessary for the
temperature inside the hive to be as high as possible.
In this cluster the bees pass the winter in a kind of sleep. They eat
the honey which they have stored, and wait for the arrival of spring.
The outermost bees of the cluster are of course the coldest, and so
that each may take a turn at being on the outside, they constantly
change places. They only leave the hive on a few occasions during this
time, and then it is to take a short flight for exercise.
[Illustration: PLATE XXV
From a photograph by] [E. Hawks
Bees clustering in Winter]
When the bright sunshine comes, and the crocuses tell of the coming of
spring, the bees begin to bestir themselves. Sometimes when it has been
snowing, and the snow is lying on the ground, the bees are deceived
by the glare into thinking that spring has come; they fly out to look
for flowers, but many of them are killed by the cold. When spring is
actually at hand, however, the pollen gatherers are despatched to the
crocuses and other early flowers. They come back laden with pollen, and
as soon as the queen bee sees this she commences to lay. These eggs
will develop into the bees which will carry on the work of the hive
during the summer. The bees which have slept through the winter only
live long enough to look after these eggs, and to bring the young bees
safely into the world.
It is interesting to note that the amount of nectar and pollen gathered
will, to a certain extent, regulate the number of eggs that the queen
will lay. If food is scarce she will not lay many, for if she did
a great number would have no food and all would die of starvation.
If, on the other hand, honey and pollen are abundant, hundreds or
even thousands of eggs will be laid in a single day. The number is
increased, too, as spring merges into summer, and for a fortnight or
three weeks in May or June, the hive is at its busiest. During this
period the fields are white with clover, and the flowers are at their
best. This time is known as the honey flow, and if the hive be a
prosperous one, the honey does literally flow into the combs.