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The myth goes something like this: bees will not forage within a 25-foot radius of their hive because that is the “cleansing area”–or restroom, if you will. This is nonsense. The rumor probably arose when beekeepers watched their charges fly right past flowers within inches of the hive only to alight on something in [...] Contrary to popular hearsay, freezing will kill all life stages of both the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella) and the lesser wax moth (Achroia grisella). To kill the moths, you must monitor both time and temperature. For example, the Mid-Altantic Apiculture Research and Extension Consortium (MAAREC) publishes the following guidelines to kill both species [...] Whatever you call it—landing board, alighting board, or front porch—bees do not need one. Hollow trees, attics, and eaves hardly ever have landing boards and neither do swarm traps. In fact, if your landing board is constantly wet or covered with snow, it can be a definite negative. Bees can get their wings “stuck” [...] Many beekeepers believe that you must remove attendant bees from queen shipping cages before you introduce a caged queen into a hive. They believe the queen will more likely be killed by the receiving hive if both the attendants and the queen have a foreign odor. This simply is not true. If you install [...] The myth goes something like this: If the queen’s wings are clipped she won’t be able to fly. If the queen is unable to fly, the swarm will return to the hive and stay with her. In truth, the clipped queen may attempt to fly anyway, then fall to the ground and be unable [...] This is a case of mistaken identity—I think—but it’s pervasive. I hear this at least once every year, and just recently one of the bee journals printed this statement, “Red clover (crimson clover) is generally considered poor bee forage.” The problem with that sentence is that the author couldn’t decide if he meant red [...] I don’t know if this rumor is everywhere, but you certainly hear it here in the Pacific Northwest and in southwestern Canada. We have a lot of red alder (Alnus rubra) in this area, so that’s probably how it got started. I was reminded of the rumor when I saw my bees packing in [...] The idea that small-cell foundation may limit the reproduction of Varroa mites resurfaces frequently. However, carefully controlled research has shown that mites may actually increase on small cell foundation. A carefully researched paper on the subject by Berry, Owens, and Delaplane was recently published in the journal Apidologie and can be downloaded here. In [...] Well, not exactly. Apis mellifera scutellata is one of several subspecies of honey bee native to Africa and it is generally referred to as the African honey bee. It was brought into Brazil for genetic experiments where it was accidentally released into the wild. It was able to mate with local honey bees of [...] A worker honey bee can sting anytime she wants—including the wee hours of night. Nevertheless, this rumor persists and I hear it frequently. It is probably true that not many people get stung at night. But the reason is simple: bees are home at night and so are you. The chance of a human/bee [...] |
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