Are pollen cells filled to the top?

[user 6228]

While doing some work on literature review of an article I realised it was assuming full cells of pollen. After only 6 years of bee keeping my impression of pollen cells is that they are only half filled. Is that your view?

 

[Anduril]

While doing some work on literature review of an article I realised it was assuming full cells of pollen. After only 6 years of bee keeping my impression of pollen cells is that they are only half filled. Is that your view?

No. I have cells filled with a gap of between one to two millimetres at the top as well as half filled.

 

[Millet]

No. I have cells filled with a gap of between one to two millimetres at the top as well as half filled.

Similar as this Quote for me but with not so many half filled, mainly all filled till around 1mm in a concaved effect that will be around 2mm from the top in the center.

 

[colinc]

My bees are less efficient collectors like Dereks. Generally seem half full sometimes more full close to new brood when expanding. Just an observation not studied very closely


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[Beefriendly]

Mine all start totally empty and fill up. At different times they are 20%, 40% up to nearly full. Then they go down again to practically nothing.

 

[For want of a better word]

Mine all start totally empty and fill up. At different times they are 20%, 40% up to nearly full. Then they go down again to practically nothing.

Mine are brim full... lots of pollen?

Nos da

 

[Millet]

Mine are brim full... lots of pollen?

Nos da

They would be if the bees are not using it to rear brood, could that be lack of Queens laying.?

 

[For want of a better word]

They would be if the bees are not using it to rear brood, could that be lack of Queens laying.?

May need to be more specific when you are checking pollen levels... I am only giving the pollen stored in the frame a good peruse when I want to put brood and bees into the queen less breeder colonies.
Seem to fill the cells pretty much to the top.

Nos da

 

[Finman]

.
Here you can see

https://www.google.fi/search?q=poll...Y08HYAhXBBywKHX5dBmwQ_AUICigB&biw=911&bih=441

 

[For want of a better word]

.
Here you can see

https://www.google.fi/search?q=poll...Y08HYAhXBBywKHX5dBmwQ_AUICigB&biw=911&bih=441

Bit like mine... but mine are a bit more ginger... and we get a lot of red pollen? Sweet Chestnut Tree pollen

Nos da

 

[mintmoth]

Mine all start totally empty and fill up. At different times they are 20%, 40% up to nearly full. Then they go down again to practically nothing.

That seems logical enough. Surely pollen levels are in a continual state of flux as stocks are used and new pollen brought in.

My understanding is that pollen is for continuous use, so I presume if pollen cells are full enough that house bees are not relieving collectors of their loads, then pollen collectors will switch to nectar gathering or some other task until the amount of pollen available in the hive starts to drop.

 

[user 6228]

Many thanks for the replies. It comes about from trying to understand the heat conduction inside the comb. A pollen filled cell conducts heat 5 times the rate as an empty cell and and a honey filled cell conduct at 3 times the rate of pollen filled cell. The papers I read seemed to assume that the pollen cells were always full to the top.

 

[Goran]

Bees cover pollen with honey and seal the cell.. Don't they?

 

[Beefriendly]

That seems logical enough. Surely pollen levels are in a continual state of flux as stocks are used and new pollen brought in.

The real question is, is the cell half empty or half full?

 

[Hivemaker.]

The papers I read seemed to assume that the pollen cells were always full to the top.

How can the cells always be in any fixed measure if there are bees using and adding to it.

 

[user 6228]

How can the cells always be in any fixed measure if there are bees using and adding to it.

My thoughts exactly. To do maths models you. Have to make simply assumptions. So a better assumption would be they were a point somewhere between full and empty if next to brood. But that only one of issues

 

[Finman]

.
No wonder that I have dropped off from modern beekeeping.
.

 

[drex]

That seems logical enough. Surely pollen levels are in a continual state of flux as stocks are used and new pollen brought in.

My understanding is that pollen is for continuous use, so I presume if pollen cells are full enough that house bees are not relieving collectors of their loads, then pollen collectors will switch to nectar gathering or some other task until the amount of pollen available in the hive starts to drop.

My understanding is that pollen gatherers unload themselves directly into the cells, unlike the nectar gatherers who are unloaded by the house bees who then put it in the cells

 

[Finman]

My understanding is that pollen gatherers unload themselves directly into the cells, unlike the nectar gatherers who are unloaded by the house bees who then put it in the cells

Perhaps that is why pollen cells cannot be totally full. Cell must have some edge that pollen stays in the cell.

 

[alldigging]

Perhaps that is why pollen cells cannot be totally full. Cell must have some edge that pollen stays in the cell.

It's mixed with nectar to make it sticky during the collection process.

And then they like to eat the fresher stuff according to this.
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0175933