theapiarist.org
I used to be a scientist and a beekeeper, but now I'm just a beekeeper who writes (and talks) ... about bees and science. I promote local bees and honey, and responsible, sustainable beekeeping.
https://theapiarist.org
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Or build one to house your bees, so you don't need to inspect colonies in the rain. I can't promise “organised”, but they make sense where the weather is changeable and/or you're not always able to inspect when the weather is good.
theapiarist.org/bee-shed-mus...
vimeo.com/347623767
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And mite mortality would probably need to be higher (often in the 25-50% range) unless multiple repeated treatments are to be made. Kableau has looked at drone fertility — unaffected by 2 h @ 41 °C (Apidologie 2020, 51, 307–315) though this is lower than many hyperthermia treatments.
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2/2 Single OA vaporisation is *only* effective if the colony is broodless, and the published data on repeat treatment (theapiarist.org/repeated-oxa...) — though there are faults in the study — is underwhelming. I've got a post on slow-release OA appearing very soon.
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Not really … it's a numbers game. Thousands of beekeepers and thousands of colonies. Those that followed the 'rules' lost fewer colonies. Sure, some who didn't lost none, and some who did lost lots, but they're obscured in the overall numbers. 1/2
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Or, for this colourblind beekeeper who is too mean to buy lots of pens I can't see, white and blue alternating, coupled with good records 😜.
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Thanks Rich ... optic flow deserves a post or two of its own. It's a great topic, relevant to bee flight in winds (as here), distance determination and correct interpretation of the waggle dance.
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2/2 OA advantages in my view are high efficacy when broodless and absence of residues in the wax. Former is not always convenient or achievable, latter is very welcome (and cannot be said for amitraz).
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The de Mattos 2017 grooming paper (the only one cited) was an in vitro study; 72 hours exposure then test. Grooming was delayed/reduced by amitraz. But amitraz is usually not present, so the bees should surely groom OK for the rest of the year? ... 1/2
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Though that's not what the cited paper claims ... in fact, they don't discriminate between the application method for OA. OAV is very effective on broodless colonies (they don't clarify whether the studies analysed used it properly), but - as with all other treatments - lags behind amitraz.
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One of my favourites ... and almost always in pairs. I see them every day in the hedgerows here when walking the dogs. Or hear their quiet calls. Lovely colours against the drab grey winter shades, and stunning in the sun 😀.
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Humour is easy in retrospect ... helped hugely by tea and cake. I don't remember laughing much before the kettle boiled though 😉. Happy New Year in due course.
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They'd get more readers if they listed the major results, or ANY results, from the study in the abstract (they don't), and if they made it Open Access ...
Treder et al (2023) www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... is worth reading (and is OA 😀, although in Elsevier 😱).
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I, for one, didn't have "advert", "shirtless man" and "Buckfast bees" on my Christmas bingo card 😉
#beekeeping #unproven_claims
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Choose an easy method - theapiarist.org/the-nucleus-... - which uses minimal equipment, learn about the timing of events, leave just ONE queen cell and unite the (dequeened) nuc back with the hive - theapiarist.org/two-into-one... - to not increase hive numbers. Stick to one method!
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But a seasonal food source? So nest site choice either happens when nectar/pollen available, or they can predict the future? Alternatively, are the trees the source of the colonies, so they're just choosing the closest site?
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13% is large enough certainly, IF it's representative. I don't know a single one of these surveys that 'groundtruths' these self-reported responses. I wish they would. I'd also like to see losses & returns vs experience. The data is important, but to be worth anything it must be validated.
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Thanks ... that's a pity. The spatial data coupled with the previous Montreal floral mapping would have been a good start.
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3/3 Finally, the Steffan-Dewenter and Tscharntke, 2000; Torné-Noguera et al., 2016 studies suggest 3-3.5 hives/km2, but were not urban studies, and - arguably - were rather specialised environments. PS Nice paper 😀which I discussed on my blog last year ... theapiarist.org/too-many-hon...
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2/3 I'm aware of a few studies (e.g. Henry & Rodet 2018 doi.org/10.1038%2Fs4...) and appreciate this is not a simple question - variable forage, variable seasons, variable latitudes etc. Whilst 'any' competition might not be avoidable, managing it or mitigating it might be.
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What progress is being made on the 'carrying capacity' of an environment? Just banning beekeeping might not save the (other) bees if the area is already depleted of resources. Alternatively, how many more flowers (etc) need to be added to allow both natives and honey bees to thrive? 1/3
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"Badly" illustrated 😉
Although it's usually honey bees photobombing pollinator news articles, sometimes a honey bee article is illustrated with something else ... like this YLH
www.mirror.co.uk/travel/usa-c...
And, I'm pretty sure the bees are A. cerana ... 🤦 D'oh!
#shoddyjournalism
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Pity they just had that subdued and sombre colour ... 😉
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Great story ... why do plants flower early in response to damage, and will any damage do, or does it have to be bee-specific? What about leafcutter damage, or flea beetles or caterpillars? Does flowering occur soon enough to benefit the colony that caused the damage? Good to credit co-auths 😀
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Do you offer an online-only subscription that's even more environmentally-friendly than FSC paper? I'd like to see the @scottishbeekeepers.bsky.social do this as well. It makes storage a non-issue, and full-text search much easier. As well as saving the planet 😉.