BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
this book will clear up many problems
not touched by other bee books.
The texts all tell a connected story of
bee life and the principles of honey
production, while this takes up singly the many questions
which perplex the beekeeper in every-day practice about
his bees.
Should be in every list of bee books.
Attractive cloth cover, 276 pages illustrated. Price $1.25.
**OUTAPIAERS**
**BY M. G. DADANT**
A clear and concise explanation of the requirements for
proper placing, arranging and managing of outapiaries.
Too many beekeepers expand into outapiary beekeeping
without fundamental knowledge of its requirements. The
result is that apiaries are often located improperly and
have to be moved after errors are discovered by costly
Special chapters are devoted to apiary sites, basis of
ing the apiary, systems of management, moving, autos and
trucks, honey houses and equipment, and treatment of
apiary during different seasons of the year, with special
apparatus used by large beekeepers.
This book is especially valuable to the beginning outapiarist, but will contain many items of value to the
experienced outyard man.
The book is cloth bound, has 125 pages and 50 illustrations, and is printed on fine paper. Price $1.00.
**American Bee Journal, Hamilton, Ill.**
# **DETECTION OF ARSENIC IN BEES**
By E. B. HOLLAND
[Reprinted from the Journal of Economic Entomology, Vol. 9, No. 3, 1916]
## Detection of Arsenic in Bees1
Footnote 1: Published with the approval of the Director of the Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station.
By E. B. Holland
The high periodical mortality in numerous apiaries of the state during the past few years has led to the examination in the Station laboratory of many samples of bees and of comb submitted by the Station apiarist. As a rule, little information was obtainable except that a large percentage of a colony or colonies had died within two or three days. Disease was not considered the cause of death as no disease of the adult bee has as yet been recognized. On the other hand, the old theory of poisoning, so often advanced as a solution of like problems, appeared more plausible than usual in view of the fact that spraying with arsenate of lead or with Paris green has become the general practice of farmers, horticulturists and tree wardens for protection against leaf-eating insects. Furthermore, bees obtain pollen and nectar from a large number of "'honey" plants over an area of approximately a dozen square miles (two mile radius)2 and are very active during the spraying season. Bees, therefore, must be particularly liable to injury if arsenical or other "'stomach poison" insecticides are used in the vicinity. The above assumption was substantiated in a large measure by chemical examination. A small amount of arsenic was found in 12 samples out of 23 submitted, as shown by the following table. The detection of arsenic in stored pollen was of special interest.
Results of Analyses
egin{tabular}{l|c|c|c|c} \hline \hline & Arsenic Present & Possible Trace & No Arsenic & Total \ \hline Bees. & 10 & 2 & 6 & 18 \ Comb & 2 & 1 & 2 & 5 \ Percentage & 52 & 13 & 35 & 100 \ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
At least 10 grams of material are deemed necessary for satisfactory work. Considerable labor is involved, however, in collecting that number of bees free from dirt and litter. As the amounts employed varied from 40 grams to less than 2, the tests are not strictly comparable. Moreover, the percentage of reacting samples was substantially reduced by including several lots secured in the course of the work that were not even suspected of poisoning.
## Methods for Destroying the Organic Matter
At the outset the organic matter in the samples was destroyed with sulfuric and nitric acids. These agents were first suggested to the writer by the late Dr. Goessmann in place of hydrochloric acid and potassium chlorate formerly employed for the purpose in the station laboratory. The process requires time and patience to insure _complete_ destruction of the organic matter but is satisfactory as a whole and preferable to the old method.
As the number of samples increased and the demand for an early report became more urgent, an effort was made to improvise a process to meet those conditions with the least possible interference with regular work. An attempt at treating with potassium chlorate and igniting (an old method for wall paper) proved impracticable, and hydrogen peroxide proved inefficient as an oxidizer. Sodium peroxide, potassium bicarbonate and potassium permanganate were also considered. The last appeared the most promising and could be used readily as a saturated solution. The combined winter losses of two apiaries furnished a liberal supply of bees for experimental work.
## Method Employed
Representative portions of the bees as received and with an added amount of arsenous oxide or of arsenic oxide were macerated in a platinum dish with a saturated permanganate solution (20 c.c. to each gram of material), evaporated to dryness, heated at a temperature not exceeding faint redness, pulverized and reheated until the residue would no longer "glow." The "'erude" ash was transferred to a Marsh apparatus with sulfuric acid (1-3) and gave, in cases of added arsenic, a positive inside mirror. Several samples of suspected hay also reacted with the above test; evidently due to heedless spraying of the grass. Possibly permanganate has been used in this connection by other workers as it is now employed for many oxidizing purposes in most laboratories. Nevertheless, our method of procedure together with results secured are offered in the hope that they may prove of service.
### Toxic Dose of Arsenic for Bees
So far as noted there have been no reliable data published as to the toxic dose of arsenic for bees. The arsenical compounds generally employed as insecticides are salts of lead, copper and lime. Although lead and copper have toxic properties, arsenic should be considered the active principle of the insecticide. Practical experience indicates that a given weight of arsenic (As) in the form of arsenites (As\({}_{2}\)O\({}_{3}\)) is more poisonous than in arsenates (As\({}_{2}\)O\({}_{5}\)). This appears to hold truein relation to plant as well as animal life. While no positive statements are possible owing to lack of sufficient data, 65 milligrams of arsenous oxide (white arsenic) to 1,000 grams of live weight may approximate the toxic dose1 for the horse, ox, sheep and fowl, and 9 milligrams for the dog and pig. On the former basis of susceptibility, 65 milligrams of arsenous oxide (equivalent chemically to 76 milligrams of As\({}_{9}\)O\({}_{6}\)) would kill 1,000 grams (net weight) of bees or 12,658 individual workers2 weighing 79 milligrams each, or on the latter basis of susceptibility, 9 milligrams of arsenous oxide would accomplish the same results. The toxic dose for bees is unquestionably small, whatever the figure, as a considerable portion of the arsenic detected in the samples was evidently in the bee load and not assimilated as shown by the following treatment. A lot of bees containing arsenie, after being shaken with 1 per cent nitric acid for 1 minute and rinsed twice with water, gave only a "possible trace" of arsenic. Another portion treated similarly with 3 per cent nitric acid would no longer react. The use of 3 per cent acid proved inadvisable, however, as it was found too active for even so short a period. The above test would indicate that bees are susceptible to even less arsenic than is detected in the original samples.
Footnote 1: Calculated from data cited by Nunn, Veterinary Toxicology.
Footnote 2: Workers containing little or no feces average about 79 milligrams in weight; on leaving the hive in the morning during the active season the feces may constitute an additional 25 milligrams; a load of honey varies from 22 milligrams to several times that weight. From various references furnished by Dr. B. N. Gates of this Station.
The work will be continued during the coming season with a view of determining the amount of arsenic present.
**General University Library**
**Detection of arsenic in beer,**
**3 1924 003 251 315**
SF 523.N725
Elements of bacteriophage,
3 1924 003 440 983
## CIRULAR No. 69
**ELEMENTS OF BEEKEEPING**
By H. R. Niswonger
Beekeeping, as a rule, is not undertaken as a sole occupation, but is usually carried on as a pleasure and a means of obtaining a natural product which only the honey bee can produce. There are, however, in many sections of Kentucky beekeepers who make a good living by devoting all their time to the production of honey.
It may be said safely that any locality where farming, gardening or fruit growing is followed, is also adapted to the keeping of bees. The mountain sections of this State afford excellent opportunities for bekeeping, on account of the natural growth of wild plants and native forest trees.
Bees are not only profitable as honey producers, but are also of great value to the orchardist and gardener as cross-pollenizers of many fruits and vegetables, thereby increasing their productiveness.
It is desirable to start with a few colonies and to make the bees pay for themselves; then to buy additional equipment and gradually enlarge the apiary. There are many beekeepers who possess only a few colonies and often these are left to shift for themselves, but if they were rightly managed they could be made a paying investment, considering the amount of capital and time expended.
## Chapter 6 Experiment
_Hive._ It is not profitable to keep bees in boxes, nail keys, or hollow logs, since it is impossible to learn the condition of the bees. The wax moth and bee diseases lurk in these old-fashioned bee houses. Much of the surplus honey is lost because swarming cannot be controlled and, in the honey that is secured, there is often found bee-bread and young brood.
There is a great annual loss in bees, due to insufficient amount of stores, as there is no way of examining the colony in regard to the quantity of honey needed by the bees.
On the other hand, where the movable-frame hives are used, the bees can be examined by lifting out the frames of comb to see whether there is plenty of brood or whether disease is present. A larger yield of honey is secured because swarming can be controlled to a certain extent and larger colonies built
Figure 1: A 10-frame Langstroth hive with metal cover.
up. The type of hive adopted as the standard and used by the best beekeepers is the Langstroth which may be obtained from any reliable dealer in beekeepers' supplies. The Langstroth live is a dovetailed box with top and bottom and contains eight or ten movable frames. These frames contain comb foundation (thin sheets of beeswax with impressions of the base of worker cells and are equally spaeed so there is just room enough for the bees to pass between them. This hive body is called the brood-chamber; here the eggs are laid, the young bees are reared and honey for the colony is stored.
_Supers._ The super, commonly called the ''cap'' by beekeepers who still use the box-hive and tree ''gum,'' is a box which is placed on top of the brood-chamber, for the storage of surplus honey. There are two kinds; the section super, containing wooden sections and used in the production of box honey, and the shallow extracting-super containing frames similar to those of the brood-chamber, only much shallower, and used either in the production of ''chunk'' or bulk comb-honey or extracted or ''strained'' honey. Many of the larger apbroad-chambers along with shallow extareting-supers, in the production of extracted honey.
_Queen-E.rclider_. The queen-excluder, made of wood and wire, with openings between the wire just large enough to permit the passage of worker bees, but too narrow to admit the queen, is placed between the brood-chamber and super and prevents the queen from going up into the super and placing eggs in the combs containing the surplus honey. It is used largely in the production of chunk and extracted honey.
_Bee-Escape and Board_. The bee-escape and board is placed between the hive and super when the honey is ready to be taken off. It frees the supers from bees so that no shaking of the frames or smoking of bees is necessary. It is put on late in the evening before the day when the super is to be taken off. The board, with the bee-escape removed and a small piece of wood tacked over the hole, is used as an inner cover and remains on the hive the year around; during the summer it is placed between the top super and the hive cover.
_Kind of Bees_. The Italian bees are considered the most profitable and are very popular among the beekeepers in this country. They are vigorous workers, gentle to handle, keep their hives clean and withstand foul-brood and the bee moth better than some of the other races of bees.
Suggested Outfit for Beginners
_Bulk Comb-Honey Production_. One colony of Italian bees in a 10-frame Langstroth hive with frames containing full sheets of medium brood foundation,
Two shallow extareting-supers complete, with narrow strips of thin super foundation,
Queen-excluder,
One Porter bee-escape and board,
Hive tool,
Bee veil,
Standard smoker,Spool No. 30 tinned wire for wiring comb foundation in the brood frames.
The beekeeper will find it to his advantage to buy the hives and supers knocked down and assemble them himself. It does not pay one to make his own hives, as the factory-made ones are of good material and made with greater accuracy. Many beekeepers make the hive body and then buy the frames in the flat.
_The Colony._ A colony of bees consists of about 25,000 or more individuals and is made up of one queen and thousands of workers who build the comb, gather the stores, keep the hive clean and feed the colony.
During part of the year there are present, in small numbers, male bees, called drones, whose sole purpose is to mate with the queen. A large swarm constitutes a colony. A small lot of bees, numbering about 5,000 or more, makes a nucleus.
_How to Get Bees._ Nuclei may be purchased or colonies in movable-frame hives. If full and strong colonies are obtained early in the spring, returns from the sale of the honey will often pay for the investment. It is always advisable to obtain colonies from someone in your own locality. In starting with a nucleus it is necessary to purchase a one to three-pound package (about 5,000 to 15,000 bees) with a good queen. By fall a full-sized colony will be built and if there is a good honey-flow at that season of the year, one may expect some surplus honey.
_Transferring to Movable-Fritine Hives._ When bees have been purchased in box-hives, it is necessary to transfer them to the movable-frame hive. This may be done by the following method: Set the box-hive aside and put in its place the new hive, filled with frames containing full sheets of foundation. Smoke the bees thoroly and knock the box to pieces, first removing one side. Cut out the combs and shake the bees upon a piece of canvas or a sheet of newspaper, in front of the entrance of the new hive. It is very important that the queen be with the bees. The queen and the bees will then crawl into the new hive and begin working just as a new swarm. The old combs, if crowded or diseased should be melted up and the honey and wax used. If no disease is present, the comb containing brood and honey may be cut to fit the frames of the new hive and held in place by strings or rubber bands. This will save the bees the delay of having to build new combs. Transfers can be made as early as fruit blooming period, selecting a warm day for the work. If this transfer is made at the time when there is a scarcity of honey flow and the new hive contains only frames of foundation, the bees should be fed a thin sugar syrup made by dissolving sugar in warm water, two parts of water to one of sugar.
_Importun of Good QHCHS._ Success in honey production, swarm control and wintering depends upon young and vigorous queens. Queens may be purchased from beekeepers who make a specialty in queen raising. For general purposes, the "untested" queens are usually satisfactory and directions for the introduction of the queens are printed on the mailing cases used in sending them. A common practis among beekeepers is to re-queen every two years, from the best colony in the apiary. This can be done by transferring a frame of brood containing ripe queen-cells from the best colony to the one to be re-queened, first making the colony queenless, twenty-four hours before giving the ripe queen-cells.
_Location of Apiary._ Bees thrive best in the open but in a place which is sheltered from the prevailing winds. The matter of sun and shade is of considerable importance and bees seem to work better where they can get the morning sun but where the hives are shaded in the afternoon. Elevate the hive above the ground to keep out intruding pests and to avoid dampness. The space in front of the hive should be kept clean of weeds and tall grass, since these hinder the bees in their work.
_Surplus Honey._ At the start, one should confine himself to the production of ''chunk'' honey, since it requires less labor and skill than the production of box or section honey. After successfully handling a few colonies and as the equipment enlarges enough to warrant the addition of an extractor, one should gradually work into the production of extracted honey. In preparing for ''chunk'' honey, two or more shallow extracting-supers with frames containing narrow strips of thin super foundation, in addition to each hive, should be on hand at the beginning of the honey flow. The number required for each colony depends on the strength and duration of the honey flow. In storing the surplus honey the bees draw out the foundation and fill the frames with eomb honey. This is cut out by the beekeeper and, with some strained honey added, is sold in the bulk as ''chunk'' honey.
To produce extracted honey either the shallow extracting-supers or extra brood-ehambers may be used. Full sheets of comb foundation are put into the frames and wired to prevent the tearing down of the comb in the process of extracting. In a ten-frame super or hive body nine frames are used and in an eight-frame, seven. This results in thick, full combs that are more easily uncapped. The supers are taken off when about two-thirds of the cells are capped, placed in an extracting machine and the honey thrown out of the cells. The combs of empty cells are then put back into the hives, to be cleaned up or to be refilled by the bees, provided the flow is still on. Some prefer the shallow extracting-supers, as they are filled and the cells capped more rapidly than in the full-depth frames. Honey from uneapped cells is usually not ripened and such honey often ferments, when kept for some time.
When the brood-chamber becomes crowded with bees and the combs begin to show white at the top of the frames, the supers should be put on. The second super should be added underneath the first as soon as the bees start capping the cells in the latter.
The beckeeper's skill in securing a large production of honey depends on (1) Spring management, in having a large force of worker bees, strong enough to work in the supers at the beginning of the honey flow; (2) Swarm control, by keeping the working force intact and at work during the entire honey flow.
_Spring Management._ If the colony has come thru the winter with a small percentage in loss of bees and has a good, pro life queen, the bees will commence working as soon as the tree buds swell. At this time the colony should be examined to see whether the queen has survived the winter and whether a good supply of food is on hand. When a colony is found to be queenless, it may be united with a normal one by setting the hive, minus the bottom board, over the one with the queen, with a sheet of newspaper between the two hives. In about twenty-four hours the bees will have gnawed thru the paper and by this time they will have become acquainted and no trouble will follow. In case a queenless colony seems very strong it may be left to raise its own queen, by adding to it a frame of brood containing eggs and young larvae taken from the best colony.
Small colonies which have young, prolific queens may be built up by transferring from the strong colonies frames of brood with adhering bees. The young bees will remain, the old bees will return to their former hives and the emerging brood will help to replenish the colony. Very weak colonies are undesirable and should be united with strong colonies. _Two weak colonies should never be united._
In uniting colonies or transferring frames of brood with adhering bees, an important fact should be considered. Every colony has a distinctive odor and by this means bees of one colony recognize the bees from another and usually resent them. This can be easily overcome by smoking each colony before uniting.
All drone comb in the brood-chamber should be removed, as it is a decided hindrance to rapid brood-rearing. Patches of drone comb may be cut out and comb foundation the exact size of the piece removed inserted in its place.
Colonies that have come thru the winter with an insufficient amount of stores for brood-rearing in the spring, may be fed a thin sugar syrup made in the proportion of one part of sugar to two parts of water by volume. Feed a few pounds a day. Supers of honey from the previous season may be placed' on top of the brood-chamber to provide the necessary food for brood-rearing.
_Swarm Control._ The greatest yield from a colony results from keeping the working forces together during the honey flow and not from an increase by swarming. It is a good practis to select certain colonies for increase and prevent swarming or division of the working force in the others. The colonies that have been selected for honey production should start brood-rearting early and at least six weeks before the honey flow and then keep their working force intact.
Figure 6: An apiary with log "gums" such as are often seen in the mountain sections.
Figure 7: An apiary with movable-frame lives. (By courtesy of H. Garman, Kentucky Experiment Station.)
Swarming may be reduced: (1) By providing sufficient room in the brood-chamber by removing some of the heaviest combs of honey, replacing them with empty ones, or exchanging frames of brood for empty combs in the weak colonies. Additional room may be provided early in the spring by placing on top of the brood-chamber either a shallow extracting-super or an extra hive-body containing frames of drawn comb; (2) By avoiding overheating of the colony by giving wide entrance and raising the hive at the back about an inch from the bottom board; (3) By going thru the hive every week when the swarming instinct is prevailing and cutting out all the queen cells; (4) By the introduction of a young queen reared from a colony not having a tendency to swarm.
Some beekeepers follow Demaree's plan in swarm control. Just before the swarming instinct prevails, put into an extra hive-body all the brood except one frame containing the last brood, with the queen and adhering bees. Fill the remaining space in each hive with frames containing full sheets of comb foundation. Set the hive containing the brood on top of the one now holding the one frame of brood and queen. Between the two hives place a queen-exeluder. Go thru the upper story a week later and destroy all queen cells. As the brood hatehes in this story the combs will be filled with honey making them extracting combs.
_Hiving a Swarm._ When the swarm issues, the old hive should be removed to a new location and a new hive containing frames with full sheets of foundation, put into its place. Exchange a frame of brood from the old or parent colony for an empty frame of the new hive. This frame of brood will usually prevent the swarm from deserting the new hive. Shake the swarm at the entrance of the new hive on the old location and transfer the supers from the parent colony to the swarm. The bees that have issued with the swarm have the storing instinct and will continue storing in the supers while the foundation in the brood frames is being drawn out in preparation for brood rearing. After the old hive is removed to the new location all queen cells but one should be cut out, to prevent afterswarms.