Following the Wild Bees : : The Craft and Science of Bee Hunting / / Thomas D. Seeley.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Princeton University Press Complete eBook-Package 2016
• VerfasserIn: Seeley, Thomas D.,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2016]; ©2016
• Year of Publication: 2016
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (184 p.) :; 50 color illus. 5 halftones. 1 line illus.

Following the Wild Bees is a delightful foray into the pastime of bee hunting, an exhilarating outdoor activity that used to be practiced widely but which few people know about today. Thomas Seeley, a world authority on honey bees, vividly describes the history and science behind this lost pastime and how anyone can do it. Following the Wild Bees is both a unique meditation on the pleasures of the natural world and a guide to the ingenious methods that compose the craft of the bee hunter.Seeley explains how one finds a patch of flowers humming with honey bees, captures and sumptuously feeds the bees, and then releases and follows them, step-by-step in whatever direction they fly, back to their secret residence in a hollow tree, old building, or abandoned hive. The bee hunter's reward is a thrilling encounter with nature that challenges mind and body while also giving new insights into the remarkable behavior of honey bees living in the wild.Drawing on decades of experience as a bee hunter and bee biologist, Seeley weaves informative discussions of the biology of wild honey bees with colorful historical anecdotes, personal insights, and beautiful photos. Whether you're a bee enthusiast or just curious about the natural world, Following the Wild Bees is the ideal companion for newcomers to bee hunting and a rare treat for armchair naturalists.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- 1. Introduction -- 2. The Bee Box and Other Tools -- 3. Bee-Hunting Season -- 4. Establishing a Beeline -- 5. Timing Bees to Estimate Distance to Home -- 6. Making Moves Down the Beeline -- 7. Finding the Bee Tree -- 8. On Not "Taking Up" the Bee Tree -- Notes -- References -- Illustration Credits -- Index