Took a little peek on the Golden gals today. I was happy to see the Carniolans (as small as a cluster as they was) angrily buzz at me when I looked in. A few attempted to fly to come and investigate who was letting the cold in. As for the Buckfast (picture above) I couldn't help but snap a shot of the gals buzzing their wings to heat up the hive. Putting my hand close to them you could actually feel the heat coming off of their little (and I mean little) cluster of bee's.
So what's a cluster of bee's? Its something of your worst nightmare. Its a massive amount of bee's that will wait until to you are asleep and then come inside your house and steal all your socks and underwear. You awake to find them missing and you walk around all day feel uncomfortable and vulnerable.
Not really.
Here it is explained by the infinite storage of information. Wikipedia.
In beekeeping, a winter cluster is a well-defined cluster of honey bees that forms inside a beehive when the air temperature dips below 54 to 57 °F (12 to 14 °C). Honey bees are but a few insects that survive the winter as a hive. As the outside air temperature decreases the winter cluster becomes tighter and more compact. The bees cling tightly together on thecombs in the hive. The temperature within the winter cluster remains remarkably warm regardless of the outside air temperature. Larger clusters (basketball size) have a better chance for survival than smaller clusters (softball size). The winter cluster within the hive must move throughout the winter to reach the available honey stored in the combs.
No comments:
Post a Comment