Just a quick question for all you seasoned beekeepers.
How do you distinguish a bee's age? (i.e. If I look at the bees in my hive, how can I tell the youngsters from the those that nearing the end of their life?)
Can you tell by looking on a frame of bees, if the majority of them a young or if their "long in the tooth"?
Can you tell ?
Regards,
Tucker1
I look at the wear of their wings to determine how young or old they are. Some times I think the older ones color has faded but I'm not sure.
I can tell by how fuzzy they are. The ones with the least amount of fuzz on them are old timers. The fuzzy ones are new. I also noticed that the wings on the new bees are a lot more close to the body. Like they have been squished in a cell for a while and haven't had a chance to open them up too much. Also, the new bees seem to be a bit smaller than the old timers.
Those are my observations.
The Oldtimers fly slower, always in the left hand lane ;) :-*
New emerged look like a wet baby chick. A week old or so look like a fuzzy chick. After that they get shiny on their back. Old workers get frayed wings.
Quote from: BeeHopper on May 07, 2008, 10:09:00 PM
The Oldtimers fly slower, always in the left hand lane ;) :-*
With the left turn signal always on.
Ya ask a straight, normal, reasonable question and you end up with all of these witty replies. :) :) :)
Do old comedians eventually become beekeepers ?
Seriously, thanks for both kinds of replies. :lol:
My hive should begin to expand with lots of new bees and I'd like to be able to identify them.
Thanks for the pointers. And the humorous remarks !
Regards,
Tucker1
Quote from: BeeHopper on May 07, 2008, 10:09:00 PM
The Oldtimers fly slower, always in the left hand lane ;) :-*
Although, I was taught to respect my elders, all you blue hairs, its to the right , extreme right, and when you leave the blinkers on, you confuse us and give us a headache, which was prob your intention in the first place. :-D
I like M.B.'s description, pretty funny and accurate.
Just an observation on my part, I find that in swarms there are mostly older, larger adults.
...JP