Behaviour of Bees when Foraging

Abstract

IN the Journal of the Royal Society of Arts (August 1945), Dr. Colin G. Butler of the Rothamsted Experimental Station discusses this subject. It appears that when a bee works a group of plants, she almost always alights on one particular plant and returns to it when about to take off for the homeward journey back to the hive. The factor which decides whether a young bee will become a member of a fixed 'population' of a foraging area is the time taken to fill her honey-sac. If this takes longer than 30-60 minutes she will wander to another area. If, on the other hand, she has collected a full load in a given time she makes orientation flights over the area before returning to the hive, observing landmarks by means of which she can locate it again. On subsequent foraging expeditions she flies straight to this area upon which she has decided and continues to visit it. The author also discusses the value and importance of bees in the pollinating of orchards. Fruit-growers are often willing to pay good prices to beekeepers who are willing to move their hives into orchards for four or five weeks while the trees are in bloom. Dr. Butler points out that as much as £3 has been paid for the use of a colony of bees during this period. The average rent seems to be about £1 per colony, and the author would like to see a minimum strength of colony for pollination decided upon on a systematic basis. Whether the honeybee is a more efficient pollinator than various other insects is a question that is sometimes asked ; but Dr. Butler believes that bees as a group are better in this connexion than flies, moths, etc.