Get Your Glands Out Ladies.

There was a "Nucleus Creation" workshop at Newbattle Abbey today.
A nucleus (or "nuc") is a bee colony starter pack; a small colony, but complete and sufficiently strong to build up a large enough population during the remainder of the year to survive the winter, suitable for the tyro apiarist to use to fill their first hive or for an experienced beekeeper to use to replace last winter's losses.

We produced three good nucleii from one moderately strong colony and, since the nucs have a far higher value than the honey that would have otherwise been produced, it's a very profitable form of beekeeping. Speaking personally, I prefer a jar of home-made jam to one of honey and the jam is easier to make, this may be the way I go with keeping bees.

We used polystyrene "nuc boxes" to house the created colonies and the blip shows the entrance of one just after the operation had been  completed. What you see here is a group of worker bees clustered around the entrance exposing their Nassenhof glands and fanning with their wings, the purpose being to guide disorientated bees to their new home. These glands lie between the last two segments of the abdomen and are not normally visible but, by flexing her tail and releasing a scent, the bee provides both visible and olfactory beacons to her wayward friends. The fanning, of course, sends out a steady stream of scent and the draught can be easily be felt on the naked skin.