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Announcement: the ultimate dilemma

Rusty — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 21:28:12 +0000

Dear Readers,

I have worked hard to develop a large readership and I appreciate every last one of you. But the resulting problem is this: at the moment I am so swamped with e-mails and comments that I can’t answer them all in one day.

My daughter says I need staff. My husband says I should charge a subscription fee to pay for the staff. Then the readers would go away, the comments would dry up, and I wouldn’t have any money to the pay for the staff that I would no longer need. Does that make sense?

Instead, I’m just asking for your patience. I try to give everyone a considered and well-reasoned answer but sometimes those take a while. I’m reminded of those phone messages that say, “Your calls will be answered in the order they are received.” Well, forget that . . . I answer the easy ones first . . . and I don’t even play dentist office music while you wait.

This notice is just to let you know I’m working on it, patience is a virtue, good things happen to those who wait . . . or something along those lines. Now, for me at least, it’s back to the keyboard.

Rusty

Update on Copyright Infringement

Rusty — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 17:39:31 +0000

I want to thank everyone who wrote e-mails and comments with ideas for combating this problem. Not only were they helpful (and entertaining!) but they made me realize I wasn’t crazy for being annoyed.

I have removed the remainder of this post until I consult with my attorney and decide how to proceed. In the meantime, thanks for reading.

Rusty

Copyright Infringement

Rusty — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 16:10:29 +0000

Dear Readers,

It has come to my attention that a website at http://www.beekeeperguide.com is publishing my daily posts, verbatim with photos, without permission and without any attribution to HoneyBeeSuite.com. The person responsible, Nick Winters, is selling a book and using my posts as a sales tool.

Although I often grant permission for the use of my material for non-commercial purposes, I do not allow it to be used for commercial enterprises. I have nothing whatsoever to do with his book called “Beekeeping 101: Beekeeping Made Easy.” I do not endorse his book, nor do I receive any remuneration from sales.

I have asked Mr. Winters to remove all of my material from his site within 48 hours. In the meantime, please be aware that his material is heavily promoted on Twitter under hash tags such as #beekeeping, #beekeeper, #bees, and #honeybees. Thank you for reading.

Rusty

One tree, three swarms

Rusty — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 15:32:49 +0000

The next morning the two swarms were right where I left them–one in the Leyland cypress and one in the red alder. I was annoyed because I had a noon meeting in Auburn and wouldn’t be able to watch them. When I left the house the day was sunny and clear, and I knew the bees would be gone when I returned. Still, I worried about them all day.

When I got home in mid-afternoon, I could immediately see that the swarm in the cypress was gone–or so I thought. But when I rounded the corner I discovered bees on the other side of the tree: not one swarm, but three! How did this happen? At first I thought the swarm had just moved to a different branch and split up. But there were many more bees than before. Had the one swarm moved? Or were these three entirely new swarms? And what’s with this tree? I have 20 other Leyland cypresses and no one seems to care.

Was I really seeing three swarms? Or was it two covering three branches? They were high up and it was hard to tell. I realized everything I have read about swarms was leaving me clueless.

The one thing I do know is that the swarm high in the red alder tree was still there–so it wasn’t them. The two swarm traps and four bait hives were empty, although each was attended by scouts. All my hives were busy and seemed unchanged. Weird.

When my husband came home we sat in the front yard watching the three swarms–or however many it was. But all of a sudden the bees seemed restless–lots of flying around, lots of activity . . . and then they were airborne. Like magic, what was once a solid object was now part of the firmament–and heading south.

Not long afterward we discovered both swarm traps were full. For years I’ve been claiming swarm traps don’t work and now, simultaneously, they each swallowed a swarm. I was amazed. I concluded there must have been just two swarms in the Leyland, and they each selected a trap. But what are the odds of that? Like zero, right?

Because bees were everywhere and unsettled, I decided to leave the traps alone until morning. But when I got back to the house, I noticed that one of the swarms was still in the Leyland cypress–the middle one of the three. Now what are the odds of that?

I took swarm inventory once more before nightfall: one in the alder, one in the cypress, one in each of the two swarm traps. Hmm . . . What I don’t know about swarms would fill many volumes.

To be continued . . .

Rusty

Three swarms on three different branches of a Leyland cypress

Honey, what’s that smell?

Rusty — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 15:54:53 +0000

I’ve always heard that honey bees would collect pollen from skunk cabbage, but I’ve never actually seen them do it until yesterday. Skunk cabbage, Lysichiton americanum, is extremely attractive to flies, and the flowers I saw yesterday were loaded with flies as well as bees.

In Honey Plants of North America (1926), John H. Lovell writes that some beekeepers in the eastern United States prized skunk cabbage because it was one of the earliest pollen-producing plants and was responsible for early brood development. He goes on to say that the hood (or spathe) protects bees from the wind so they can collect pollen on days that otherwise might be too cold for foraging.

Lovell was writing about the eastern skunk cabbage which is similar to our western species. According to a Washington State University bulletin, “Western skunk cabbage derives its name from the malodorous, distinctive “skunky” odor that it emits. The brilliant color of the flowers earns it an alternative name of ‘swamp lantern.’” The bulletin also mentions that skunk cabbage is one of the first plants to bloom in the spring. It begins to emerge in February and may continue to bloom throughout March and April.

According to Lovell, skunk cabbage is strictly a pollen plant. If any nectar is secreted at all, the amount is miniscule.

I took the following pictures yesterday afternoon, which was sunny but cold. Both bees and flies flocked to the bright yellow flowers.

Rusty

Lysichiton americanum

Small flies can be seen hiding inside the spathe.

Two honey bees and a fly gather pollen.

Honey bee pollen sac getting full.

From the far side of the pond: AntBlog

Rusty — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 22:53:15 +0000

Friends like this make the Revolutionary War seem so unnecessary! Thank you so much, Richard.

Rusty

Yes, I actually did graduate . . .

Rusty — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 18:49:46 +0000

Thanks to all of you who asked!

I graduated last Friday (June 11) with a Masters in Environmental Studies from The Evergreen State College. All my papers (except two in aquatic biology) were about bees, either wild or managed. In addition, my candidacy paper was titled “Native Pollinators and the Food Supply: Can Wild Bees Bridge the Gap Left by Apis mellifera?” and my thesis was “The Effects of Pesticide-Contaminated Pollen on Larval Development of the Honey Bee, Apis mellifera.”

Now it’s on to bigger things. However, I will continue to blog, keep bees, and work on pesticide-related issues. The entities responsible for the pesticide mess in this world better brace themselves because I’m just getting warmed up.

Thanks again for all your kind comments,

Rusty

Bees are infinitely complicated: questions please!

Rusty — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 16:16:49 +0000

Readers,

I am trying to anticipate your questions but it is easy to forget what those questions might be. Please contact me or leave a comment if there is something you want to know. If I don’t know the answer, I will research it for you. I have many contacts in the beekeeping and bee research communities and we are all eager to find the best answers for both bees and humans. No question is too big or too small.

I hope to hear from you soon!

Rusty