# General beekeeping > Bee blether >  Senior scietific exams.

## Greengage

Anyone interested in discussing senior scientific exam questions and queries. I wont bore you if your not interested.

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## Thymallus

Yes. 
It's along winter, grey cells need some exercise.

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## Greengage

Describe the Pheromone glands of the honey bee? that was the question but all answers I see mention the Mandibular glands, and Salivary glands are they technically pheromone glands as they don't have ducts to the external skeleton.

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## Mellifera Crofter

Both glands have ducts outwards, but only the mandibular gland produces pheremones (but it's more complicated than that, depending on whether she is a queen or a worker, and the age of the worker).  The pheremone gland you're probably most familiar with and have seen a lot in action is the Nasanov gland at the tip of the worker's abdomen - but there are quite a few more.

I highly recommend Celia Davis, 'The Honey Bee Inside Out'.  That book has helped me enormously to understand the working of bees a bit better - but I have a lot more to learn.
Kitta

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## Greengage

I Have listed the following  Mandibular Gland, Dufor Gland (Alkaline Gland), Arnhart Gland (Footprint or Trail Gland) Nasanov gland, Renner Baumann Gland (Tegrite Gland) Koschevnikos Gland, and Wax Glands, I also added Mandibular glands. When answering the question.

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## Mellifera Crofter

Wax glands produce wax - not pheremones.
Kitta

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## Greengage

> Wax glands produce wax - not pheremones.
> Kitta


Agree but the question keeps coming up similar to this, Name the pheromone glands of the honey bee? and Name the exocrine glands of the honey bee? and the same answer keeps coming up including the wax glands.
A pheromone  is a chemical substance produced and released into the environment by an animal, especially a mammal or an insect, affecting the behavior or physiology of others of its species.
when wax is laid down, bees walking on it pick up scent from the hive so technically it could be included, what do you think,

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## Mellifera Crofter

GG, I think wax has a smell, it does not produce a pheremone that tells the bees, for example, "Oi, this hive is feeling ill"; or "oi, fill me with brood".

The bees do use their wax combs for information, though - but that is through vibration.  Read Jürgen Tautz, "The Buzz about Bees'.

Kitta

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