The Savannah morning news., 1901-03-11
HUNTING WILD BEES.
How Their Trees Are Found in sum
mer and DespOiIed of Their sweets
Later

forest, putting private mark on the
tree and, late in the fall, when the
first fiurries of snow come, telling the
tree and robbing the bees of the honey
they have gathered drop by drop during
the long summer days from the flowers
in wood and field. At least that is the
point of view of my old bee hunter
friend, Handy Thurber, and the rest of
the band of human robbers who profit
by the industry of the wild bee and their
own knowledge of wooderaft
The wild bee gets to work in the
spring, almost before the snow is off
the ground, or as soon as the water elms
are in blow. Tho next food supply comes
nom the pussy willow blows, then from
the SOFT maple blows and dandeions.
About June TO- in Western New York
White clover is in blossom and the UNI
tanned bee likes nothing better. though
fond of Eastwood blows, which are ready
10 give up honey about the middle of
july. In August the buckwheat fields
are mass of blossoms, and there are
hundreds of varieties of wild flowers to
SIP honey from. Red clover contains
more honey than white clover, but IL is
harder for the honey bee to work. Bum
bic bees are fond of red clover blossoms
ana are built on a plan to make it an
easy Hover for them to work Golden
ROD Is another favorte Of the wild bee.
The wild aster Is the last flower in
western New York woods that produces
money, the bees often working on it until
late in October.
Last summer and fan / made several
Trips TO the woods with Handy Thurber,
VINO has hunted bees for twenty-five
years cut hundreds of trees, and is an
authority on the habits of the untamed
pee He carries his kit in a small pine
DON lt consists of quantity of bee
comb, bottle of strained honey, a bottle
or anise, pieces of red, yellow, and white
chalk, and a smaller box with a sliding
glass cover. The last he calls his bee
poX' In his pocket he carries a telescope.
Tracking the Bees.
AS soon as we left the main travelled
hgnWay and crossed a meadow that bor-
dered the woods we found wild bees at
work on the flowers. After following an
old trail in the woods for quarter of a
mile we came to little clearing which
was overrun with wild flowers. Here he
unpacked his kit, placed the box on a
stump and took out the small box with
the glass cover. After a little skirmish-
ing he brushed a bee, off wild flower
into the box, closed the slide, and walked
TO the stump He poured some honey
Iioan the bottle on the comb took the
bee out Of the box and set it at work
on the comb. The operation was repeated
until there were half a dozen bees at
work on the comb
one by one, as fast as the bees secured
all the honey they could carry they cir
cleo about the stump until above the
top OF the trees, and then darted for
nome on straight line with the speed
OF In, g.
with other bees until there We're forty
or more at work on the comb The
hunter then took a piece of red chalk
pulVerized 1t, dampened it with saliva.
ana with a small brush marked the bust
ness end Of bee about to fly away. AS
the bee arose in the air the hunter took
out his watch and timed the Journey.
The red bee was back in six minutes.
That means that she did not travel
more than a mile" he said
Another bee was marked with Yellow
chalk and another with white and timed
until the hunter was satisfied that their
home was not more than a half mile
away. With his telescope he watched
the bees and noted the direction they
pursued. Then he imprisoned the marked
bees in the box and we marched uphiIl
in the direction in which the bees had
been flying. In another open spot he
released them and within half an hour
with the aid of his telescope, he had To-
Gated the colony In a hollow maple tree
on the crest of the ridge.
Cutting and RObbing the Trees,
Bee trees are not cut until the villa
flowers are all dead and the bees have
ceased making honey. A cool day is
usually selected for then the bees are
likely to be less fierce In their attacks
the uyb t.
first trip to the woods last fall was
made early in November. We carried
axes, pals, long spoon to SCOOP out
money with, small bundle of straw. and
some matches. The hunter insisted on
taking along the bee kit he had carried
to the woods earlier IN the season: why.
was unable to imagine, as the bees
had quit working some time previous
After twenty minutes of vigorous chop.
ping, the tree, a big maple, sound at the
butt, toppled and fell. The hunter made
1t fall across some saplings in order to
break the fall and prevent the honey
from being smashed.
When the broken limbs has ceased fall.
ing about, the hunter put on his hood of
wire and cheesecloth, and walked down
the fallen tree to the spot where the bees
were buzzing about, and cut an opening
in the shell In order to take out the
money. The bees crawled all over his
clothing, and buzzed about like a slab
saw in dinky sawmill. He has been
stung so many times he says, that he
pays no attention to stings but I noticed
that he had a rubber band about the
bottom of each trouser leg. A few sharp
blows OF the axe exposed the layers of
honey to view. He placed the straw on
the ground under the opening and set
1t on fire to smoke out the bees, which
were quiet after that.
In operating a camera / got in too
close quarters and was stung twice One
Industrious bee crawled up in my hair.
and left his sharp imprint on the top OF
my head. 1t Is fortunate that a bee can
sting but once, and that a drone can't
sting at all. This tree yielded Gifty
pounds of as fine honey as / ever tasted.
Wild honey has a wood flavor that is as
far superior to the flavor of honey made
in patent hive on a farm as venison is
to cut from cornfed Texas steer.
After the hunter had robbed the bees
they seemed broken hearted clinging TO
the side of the fallen tree by the thou
sands, seemingly not knowing what TO
do or where to go. Some OF them, the
hunter said, would join other colonies,
but most Of them would freeze or starve.
The smoke suffocated hundreds of them.
After the honey was in the pals ! pre-
pared to start for home, but the hunted
detained me. He said he was waiting
for band Of robbers that would be due
I'm a few minutes The robbers he spoke