I tend to think of absconding as a “new colony” thing. That’s because I usually hear of it when a beekeeper puts a package in a freshly painted hive made of newly milled lumber, and the bees decide it doesn’t feel like home. New packages often leave in the first week or two, especially if […] Read more
I am pleased to share another photo from Louisiana beekeeper Robert Lunsford who, earlier this year, sent awesome images of chimney bees. Today’s photo shows a honey bee fanning in front of her hive while carrying a full load of propolis. I love the way the light glows through the big, gooey drops. Better still […] Read more
Yesterday was unusually warm, dry, and sunny for mid-October. My bees were darting about in the sunshine, but for some reason, they were particularly attracted to this elderberry bush. The bee in the photo was pressing her two rear legs into the bark, one side and then the other, much like a cat kneads with […] Read more
Bees are very particular about what stays in the hive and what doesn’t. The photo below shows a colony of bees eating a sugar cake that was served on a paper plate. They are happy to have the sugar, but see no use use for the plate. So they chew it into small pieces and […] Read more
To a reader in central Florida, I couldn’t get your e-mail address to work, so I’m putting the answers to your questions right here, front and center. I hope you find this. Questions: I live in central Florida near Ocala forest on a ¾-acre lot that I’m allowing to revert to native growth and I’m […] Read more
After I wrote about floral fidelity and the purity of pollen baskets, I received this awesome photo by Chelsea at thehoneybeat.com. Look carefully and you will see the worker in the center of the photo has pollen baskets of two distinctly different colors. So how did this happen? I’ve tried to think this through, but […] Read more