ABSTRACT
WHEN bees fly too far off into the skies, they baffle their pursuer, who is anxiously gazing after them, with all kinds of clever tricks, since they do not want him to discover the spot where they have settled. 1 Anyone determined to track down their residence, therefore, must make his way to clear streams, for bees flock to them in great numbers in order to fetch water during their breeding season. When you have caught several, you should mark them by sticking a finger’s-length of white thread to each one with pitch; in their successive flights they will thus reveal the correct route to the place where the main swarm is permanently located. Otherwise, when you find them hovering round springs, imprint their backs with gypsum or soft red earth. You can thereby make a note of their settlement, since they will always return to it, whether it be near or far, or whether they fly to it swiftly or linger on the way. 2 Finally it is quite easy to be directed with the help of keen-scented, barking dogs to a swarm which is clinging to trees, for they cause the bees to set up a loud buzzing. Palladius, in Bk V, also reckons this a good method. 3
