From: DeeALusby1@aol.com
Date: Wed, 9 Jan 2002 22:31:46 EST
To: BiologicalBeekeeping@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: cell size measurement (Size of Queens)

In a message dated 1/9/02 10:21:24 AM Pacific Standard Time,
pdillon@club-internet.fr writes:

> Just a point of interest - noting from the geological record - organisms
> have had the tendency to become larger as they evolved. Then eventually
> became extinct.

Reply:
Aaah yes, Peter, but we are talking bees here and they have been around for
millions of years and even fossolized honeybees with pollen baskets on legs
have been from over 80 million years ago I think, but I would have to look
the research paper up, and probably go back to at least 125 million year ago,
or whenever flowering plants appeared.

Now bees as far as I know always are small, medium, and large in range size
for colonies and this allowes for transitioning into and out of areas of
habitat. It also allows for transitioning upwards and downward with
elevation. This is good to have because as tectonic plates shift with
continents it allows for bees sizing up and down to match climate, latitude
and altitude (basically the localized environment). What this means is that
bees transition bigger in sizing as needed and also transition smaller in
sizing. Another variable that effects this also is natural heat i.e. thermo
areas as volcanic areas.

Regards,

Dee A. Lusby