MARCH 1993 The New Season Well, I wonder what kind of a year this forthcoming one will be. It seems to me that it will probably be a rather bitter-sweet mixture with many or all of us finding varroa and taking measures as we feel appropriate, but also I hope, with a new excitement as the new challenges arise and as we mingle more with our friends in other Associations. A number of things are going on this year including the return of regular Association apiary meetings at St. John's copse, all of which have a planned theme, but we don't know how to tell the bees what each theme is, so things may change when we open the boxes. This year however, we are also planning regular evening meetings to coincide with the apiary meetings. These are deliberately scheduled for the week after each apiary meeting so that we can talk about both what happened and what could or should have happened. Two quiz nights are now planned, one in April at Andover and one in September here, both between Andover and ourselves. We need a team for each event and I ask now for volunteers. The teams for each event may be different and the questions will be about beekeeping and related subjects. A few of us have been to the Andover District honey show award nights where various games & quizes are the order of the day, and we have always found the events very entertaining. An important aspect of these joint meetings is to encourage our groups to mingle so that both Associations will benefit from our combined ideas. SO please do try to come along either as a team member or as a spectator. Car sharing can be organised if you give me a call. Incidently, if you have any ideas or ambitions regarding games, quizes or other entertainment which would be suitable for meetings like these, please do let us know! Whilst on the subject of joint meetings, we have also been invited to Newbury for a talk by Adrian Waring on "Breeding Better Bees". Unfortunately as this meeting is on March 12th, it is likely that members who did not come to the February meeting will not get this invite in time. However, details from Paula Edwards' (Newbury's Secretary) letter are as follows: ... Adrian Waring was the County Bee Advisor for Northamptonshire until his retirement in 1990. He has long been a leading member of the British Isles Bee Breeders' Association, with a particular interest in supersedure. He is an excellent speaker and we would love to have a large and lively audience. The venue is Upper Bucklebury Memorial Hall, which is sited north east of Thatcham. If you approach Thatcham from the east, you will see a Little Chef on your left. Just after this turn right into Hartshill Road and continue uphill for about 1 miles. At the top of the hill bear right into Upper Bucklebury. The Memorial hall is on your right after about another mile. If you are approaching Thatcham from the west, pass through the town and turn left at the Bluecoats School into Hartshill Road. The hall is warm and large with plenty of parking. We would be delighted to see you all, Yours sincerely, Paula Edwards Bulk Buy Scheme Takeup on the scheme has been more modest than I had hoped but with some rationalisation will be a success. I have elected, for the moment at least, to not buy from Steele & Brodie. Generally, there were only a few items which were available from only them and prices are often more keen elsewhere. I have therefore bought all equipment that I can from Thorne's and foundation from Kemble. Some of this buy shall go into stock and will be available to members at a good price, although obviously higher than if it had been ordered in advance. The decision to take this approach was largely to avoid a large capital outlay 'on spec.', which the Association cannot afford and which I was reluctant to go too far with. I have discovered that Thorne's also supply varroa floors & mesh, however theirs is epoxy coated steel rather than plastic (so you can torch sterilise it) and is very competitive in the non- economy form. Steele's economy is much cheaper. I also realised that Thorne's 'higher prices for some hives' is because they supply two supers with a complete hive, rather than Steele's one super, so Thorne are actually cheaper. Kemble's foundation beats both on price and equals or beats on quality. some stock will be kept, for the time being at least, of most popular sizes of frames in Hoffman spaced brood and Manley spaced supers; foundation in BS and M.D/Jumbo sizes for both brood and supers. I have also bought two complete Jumbo hives (for sale whole or in parts) and a couple of extra supers (because Langstroth Jumbos are what Sue & I use and I will buy them if nobody else does). Finally I have a few porter escapes, candle wicks, catalogues and tamper evident labels (see below), all at competitive prices and with the modest profit margin going to the Association. Tamper Evident Labels consisting of a hexagonal tab about the size of a 50p piece to which is attached a narrow 'tail'. The tab is intended to attach to the top of the jar and the tail to the side, typically trapped under your own main label. Presently in yellow with a green overprint featuring a bee and carrying the caption "direct from the producer", these are also specially printed for us with the message "Basingstoke Beekeepers". You should find some free samples in with this newsletter and we expect to sell them at a nominal price (1.20 per 100) to little more than cover the cost, because part of their purpose is to wave the flag for your Association. Stop Press Another of our members has 'phoned me today (Sat 13) to tell me that he is sure that he has varroa in his colonies as he has found a number of the mites only days after fitting varroa floors and on the morning of his intended Bayvarol test (I'll just clear out the debris before I start!). This is also in an area relatively well away from the other known outbreaks and by a beekeeper who, I know, has been very alert all along. Don't forget, If your bees don't have it yet they soon will -- we can live with this mite, and so can our bees with our help Association Apiary At the AGM, members expressed the view that any member having bees on an Association apiary should be allowed to keep two colonies rather than one colony as stated by the Apiary Managers. The managers had originally considered the pros and cons of this 'rule' and were not entirely happy with it because of the occasional need to 'help out one colony from another'. The managers would like to make it known that they have now reviewed the situation, particulary with regard to the strong feelings apparent and agree that two colonies per resident is the best compromise. Please note however that all other statements about the number of colonies on the sites are considered essential and will remain as is the requirement to have the agreement of the managers to keep colonies on the sites. G. L. Scott, for and on behalf of the apiary managers. JUNE 1993 Music, Fireworks and a Picnic The National Trust hold a number of concerts throughout the year at various of their houses. They are having an open-air concert on the 10th of July, featuring the Wren Orchestra playing 'popular classics' starting a 8pm and with a firework finale at about 10pm. The National Trust actively encourage group visits and picnics, so we are planning to have an Association picnic there for the concert. The Gates open at 6:30pm giving plenty of time to settle and eat. Tickets are from The Vyne either in person or by post and cost 10 each. Bring your own picnic. Note that this concert is open-air and will go ahead whatever the weather, so if it looks wet, bring a golf umbrella or similar. Bulk Buy I shall very soon be placing another order for equipment from E. H. Thorne. If you want anything from them please call me as soon as you can so that I may include your needs. Once again, if I can get the order quantity high enough I can avoid paying carriage. I still have stocks of a a number of important items -- see the stock list elsewhere in this newsletter. I am trying to keep a stock of items that are likely to be most useful and that we can afford to keep (stock costs money). 1993 Honey Show Basingstoke's 1993 Honey show is on the 19th September at John Hust of Everest School in Popley, again sharing the venue with the aquarists but this year, hopefully, also with the "Hop & Grape" home brewing society. The schedule, rules and an application form are all included with this newsletter. The April Varroa Meeting This was a resounding success with a substantial turnout of both members and visitors, and with a number of enquiries & addresses left. The video "The Search for Varroa in the UK" is one made by Thorne at their Wragby site and features Medwyn Bew giving an excellent talk on the subject, together with various films of practical activities. After a brief introduction from me, Norman Hughes talked about his own personal experience of finding Varroa in a colony that he 'inherited' last year. It is safe to say that the colony was quite badly affected and yet Norman had not seen evidence last year inspite of close inspection. This underlines how elusive the mite can be (Norman is vigilant) and how well it can conceal itself. Bayvarol, however, resulted in a significant knock down (730 mites in 24 hours). We had various exhibits on display including some of the tools one might use (Varroa floors, split drone frames, magnifying glasses etc.) and actual varroa mites freshly gleaned from two local affected colonies, in one case exhibited with Braula for comparison and in another case actually on the paper insert removed from the hive that very evening "I don't know what we will see but I don't think we'll be disapointed". This showed exactly what you see on a colony floor and demonstrating that seeing the mites is quite easy, for many of us with the naked eye although a magnifying glass can help (a magnification of two or three seems about right). We finished the talk and video early and took a number of pertinent questions and observations before having our tea, coffee and biscuits and a chat about varroa and beekeeping. Andover Quiz Night Andover's quiz night was an excellent if modestly attended meeting made all the better by us winning (this time -- they'll be back, here in September for a return match). Our team was Hector Albery, Norman Hughes and Dave Purchase who together seemed never to be stumped for the answer, although I certainly held my breath occasionally. The questions, compiled independently by Jim Wiggins (Andover's Chairman) and me, and edited by Barry Deeks (Andover's President) were a good mix ranging from the 'you really should know this' through to some fairly tough 'testers'. All of our team put in a superb performance, but perhaps the star was Hector whose eyes developed a positively wicked twinkle and whose answer to 'how many eyes does a bee have' was "three ocelli and two compound" fired back sharp enough to get the undivided attention of an SAS officer. Well done everyone, both team members and audience. I can be quoted as saying that I never enjoy anything where Fun is spelled with a capital letter, and quiz nights are frequently described like that. I enjoyed the evening and I think all of the audience did too. The evening could be described as educational and certainly will become more so as new questions get more elusive, but mostly it was an opportunity to mix and mingle. We finished the evening with the anticipated inter-association chat about beekeeping. Please come to September return match, I think that you too will enjoy it. Swarm Prevention Meeting Our first 'free form' evening meeting went very well indeed. The 'topic' was swarm control (or more correctly swarm prevention) but was allowed to wander, sometimes quite widely, from the main subject (why is choice of hive so emotive a subject?). Whilst I had prepared some notes and tried to work my way through them (I just made it), I was more involved in keeping the meeting at least loosely around the main subject (just in case anyone really came to learn about swarm prevention). These meetings are intended to be a combination of loosely structured 'teaching', shared experience and coffee evening. This evening achieved all of these most admirably, but a still higher proportion of members with experience would make things better still. I think we can all learn from others, even if its only having your own personal views confirmed (or challenged!), and any chat about bees or beekeeping seems to be both interesting and educational. I'd like to see more of the more experienced beekeepers though -- you may learn a little and we may learn a lot, but we will all talk and listen. See you at the next meeting? Some months ago, Angela (I never did note her surname) gave me a questionaire to send out with the newsletters and several members responded. The purpose of the questionaire was to find specific uses for a computer for beekeepers, and to address those uses as part of a submission for membership of the British Computer Society. Angela talked about and demonstrated a program (sic) that she had produced, called "BUZZ", that did the things most people asked and a number of things they haven't -- yet. The program seems competently implemented, particularly remembering that she was time constrained, and may be of interest to those who have access to an IBM/PC class of computer. At present there may be a licensing difficulty (due to the language/daytabase chosen out of necessity), but if anyoune is interested in a copy (for evaluation?) please give Tony Bamberger a call. Varroa Survey Sid Pullinger has sent us an interim Varroa survey report, which you will find published in Bee Talk. The figures he quotes for us are not quite right and have in any case moved on as more results go in. One of the twelve members he quotes is actually a Fleet member in our area who has varroa, and Sue and My infected colony at Oakley was counted twice (there and in Kempshott). I know of another member whose bees are affected and who had not responded in time for inclusion in the interim report. There have also been other 'clear' results since the report. The 'real' figures at that date are therefore 5/11 for Basingstoke & 4/6 for Fleet, but with at least one further infestation in Basingstoke to be reported. I suspect that the number of reports was still rising fast at the end of April and that a better overall picture will be available in September. Bumble bees A story comes to my notice from a newspaper (but I don't know which one), that Bumble bees have a startling defence against a parasite! The article says that Bumble Bees infected by the parasite (a flesh eating fly) have developed a way to foil it. The article says that Doctor Christine Mller and Proffessor Paul Schmid-Hempel of the Swiss Federal Polytechnic and Basle University have described in the magazine Nature, how the bees deal with the attacker. In the worst affected areas, 70% of bees have a parasite egg layed in them . The egg develops over 12 days and hatches as an adult fly from the dead bee. However, the bees seem aware that the egg is developing and deliberately spend time out in the ciold to slow its development, rather than in the warm nest where the fly can develop properly. Dr. Mller says that the bee lives longer after its spell in the cold and that the parasite is often unabvle to develop into a pupa before its host dies. BBKA Insurance After enquiries, we now have a statement from BBKA of the position with regard to the Insurance of BBKA Members in respect of claims by third parties: All Individual Members and paid-up Members of Area Member Associations are indemnified under a Public Liability Policy issued by Excess Insurance Co. Ltd. for such sums as the Members shall become legally liable to pay in respect of claims made against them arising from BODILY INJURY or DISEASE (fatal or non-fatal) to persons or DAMAGE to property caused by any accident arising out of beekeeping activities occuring during the period of insurance. Liability arising out of food or drink poisoning or foreign deleterious matter in food or drink included. The insurance does NOT cover:- 1. Injury to any persons employed by or acting on behalf of the Members. 2. Damage to the Member's own property or property under his control. 3. Accidents outside the limits of Great Britain, Northern Ireland, the Isles of Man or the Channel Islands. 4. The first 100 of each and every claim including costs. NOTES It is up to the beekeeper to see that his bees do not cause a nuisance. If he finds they are doing so he must take steps to prevent them. Members must give to the Treasurer of the BBKA, immediate notice in writing, with full particulars of the happening of any occurence likely to give rise to a claim under the scheme, and of the receipt by the member of notice of any claim, and of the institution of any proceedings against the member. Members must not admit liability for or agree to settle any claim. Costs and expenses incurred in the defence of a claim will not be paid unless the written consent of the insurers to pay such costs and expenses is obtained beforehand. Members must take all reasonable steps to prevent accidents and to comply with all statutory and other obligations and regulations imposed by any authority. The cover afforded as mentioned above to Members of the British Beekeepers' Association extenrs to a maximum sum of 1,000,000 in respect of any one accident or series of accidents arising out of any one event and there is cover up to a total of 1,000,000 in any one year. SEPTEMBER 1993 Summer Meetings The summer meetings this year have been very satisfactory with a fair turnout for each meeting and some very interesting discussions. One of the aims of the meetings has been to increase the time that we spend talking about our craft, as well as consciously imparting and sharing information about beekeeping. Whilst we have usually selected a specific topic for each meeting, they have been deliberately allowed to wander from the prime subject, providing we cover enough for the newcomers to learn the essentials. So the swarm control meeting talked quite a bit about choices of hive, the making increase meeting talked about finding the Queen and dealing with laying workers, the 'open' meeting in August had practical demonstrations and discussions about different ways of handling frame wiring. All the meetings covered a range of things 'beekeeping', much fact and experience, many questions and answers, several anecdotes and much chat about plain old everyday beekeeping. A good series of meeting that grew stronger as the year progressed, and I hope will grow stronger still in the future. The apiary meetings throughout the year have also been quite well attended, although of course, many members are looking after their own bees on Saturday afternoons and have difficulty being in two places at once. Practical meetings with a planned theme are inevitably difficult because the bees never do what you want when you want, indeed if they did, beekeeping would be much less fun than it is, if somewhat more profitable. So, as you will have guessed, the meetings tended to be standard practical beekeeping with a chat about what we would have done if the bees had read the books. I sometimes think they read the books to find out what NOT to do! Thank you to all the beekeepers who come to these meetings, but particularly to those more experienced beekeepers who come to give support. It's especially good to have 'old faces' and other viewpoints because it keeps up the strength and spirit of an Association. I hope yet more of you can make it occasionally in the future. Varroa Around this is the time of year when the little blighters migrate to other colonies, so very soon now is a good time to consider a Bayvarol test. Also, if the test proves positive, the near future will be a period when the number of capped cells will be minimal so that Bayvarol will be at its most efficient, and when honey flow is minimal, or at least unlikely to yield a crop -- remember, Bayvarol may be a 'friendly' pesticide, but we still don't want traces found in honey if it's at all avoidable. Remember that Sid Pullinger is running his survey of Varroa, its spread and the effectiveness of treatments and so on, so try to collect this information ready for him in the spring. Last year, because things were a bit of a rush, the information came in rather a trickle and I know he would prefer to get things done promptly in the spring. I have heard that it has been possible to buy single sachets (4 strips) of Bayvarol from some suppliers, but if you do, you may not get the manufacturer's instructions. This is of course very remis of the suppliers, but I know that they are trying to be helpful. So, I expect to enclose with this newsletter a photocopy of the instructions so that you have a copy for reference, or if you fail to get one with your supplies. The Vyne Picnic The turnout for the picnic was in the end rather modest but those of us who did go, had a good time. It didn't rain, even though for a while it looked as though it might, however it was remarkably cold for the middle of July! -- warm coats and flasks of soup were definitely the order of the day. The event was staged on the main lawn between the house and the river, the house being floodlit from dusk. The music was very good if not excellent and the firework finale was quite splendid. Because the night was relatively bright, the fireworks were delayed about 1/2 hour to get the best effect, so we also had some extra, unscheduled music (more from the 'Four Seasons' -- we'd had Spring and Summer, now we got the subjectively more appropriate Autumn and Winter). The fireworks' organisers had resisted the temptation to do a 'good night' cliche and had instead put their efforts into a splendid main display with some quite startling and subtle effects, apparently well timed to the music. The whole effect is very pleasant with every kind of picnic from 'butties in a box' to full dress, tablecloth, and silver cutlery & candlesticks. I shall certainly go again and I hope next time that yet more of you will join us. The National Trust hold several of these types of event -- If you prefer something other than classical music (I prefer jazz), please say and We'll consider the alternatives. Apiary Manager Wanted After two years of sterling work, regrettably Stewart Broadbent has to stand down from his joint apiary management role with Dave Purchase. This is due to a very increased workload from his employers who are, amongst other things, applying for BS5750 certification, and I know from personal experience that this can be a hectic and traumatic experience. Dave, whilst happy to continue as apiary manager, is suffering increasingly from back problems and therefore feels the need for assistance in his tasks. WE NEED therefore, another member who will help Dave. David is happy to continue both his formal administrative role, controlling the use by members of our various apiary sites and his Association beekeeping role, however he does need some assistance with the management of the Association's bees. I think that this is an ideal opportunity for someone with modest or possibly no beekeeping experience to gain additional practice and experience with bees. Dave is very knowledgable on the subject, a pleasure to work with and has a good feel for the bees themselves -- If you want a chance to learn this is a good opportunity. You don't need experience, but you will need to help -- the Association tries to use its own bees as a further source of income so this is commercial beekeeping on a very small scale. A final aspect, I feel .. and I think most members would agree .. that the 'other apiary manager' should also be on the Committee (there is constitutionally only one "apiary manager"), so you will probably also be expected to be one of the three 'other members' on the Committee and come to the committee meetings. These are now held once a month (usually) and are not onerous -- we deal in an informal way with Association business, have tea or coffee, biscuits, a chat and so on. Please join us! Bulk Buy I have just managed to put together a third order on Thornes for equipment, some against specific requests from members and some for stock. The Association has made a modest profit from this and I am confident that we can continue to do so. Now is the time to remind you to think about the things you want for next year so that I can again place good sized orders with both Thorne and Kemble. I expect to place the next order very shortly after the AGM to take advantage of their end-of-year prices. The difference between retail price and ours is your saving and the difference between our price and the trade price goes to the Association, so is still your saving. Now I know we can do it, I am happy to accept most orders without a prior deposit, as Thornes will supply us on a 30 day account, however we will need payment promptly once the goods are delivered as our cash in hand is still modest. If you're buying something really expensive (and please do), then we may need to ensure some sort of guarantee, but most of the time it's a very straight-forward cash on delivery. Chairman Wanted Last year, Chris Mounty wanted to stand down from his post as Chairman. Chris has been either Secretary or Chairman for several years now and is definitely due for a furlough. I am very much in favour of continuity, but we DO need to change some committee members from time to time. There are two conspicuous reasons for this: Firstly, from the Association's point of view, we must get new blood and the associated new ideas, or things begin to stagnate and secondly, from the point of view of each committee member, we all need a break or we can begin to feel used or abused. BDBKA's committee is not a high preasure activity. We meet once a month for an hour or two, deal with the Association business and finish with a tea or coffee and a chat. The Caped Crusader In article from New Scientist (March '93) reports an interesting development in hybridised bee behaviour. The article refers rather emotively to African "killer" bees 'Apis Mellifera scutellata'. The bees that, possibly unfairly, have that description are actually the South American produced cross between the European Apis Mellifera Mellifera and the African Apis Mellifera Adonsoni. The article does however make good reading. Africa's "killer" bee is being wiped out by an even more lethal invader which infiltrates its colonies and turns the bees against each other. So far, about 50,000 colonies in South Africa have succumbed to the cape honeybee (apis mellifera capensis) and some apiaries have been totally destroyed. (ABJ v132 p519). African bees (Apis Mellifera Scutellata) are notoriously aggressive and can quickly colonise new areas. For example, the descendants of African bees that escaped from a laboratory in Brazil now dominate most of South America and Mexico. But despite their fearsome reputation, African bees are no match for the Cape Bee, a favourite of beekeepers in the Cape Town region of South Africa. Cape bees have adapted to the areas wet winter and dry summer. The bees forage mainly in winter, the principle flowering season in the Cape. Elsewhere in the country, beekeepers keep African bees, which forage in summer, the country's rainy season. The two species come into contact when the Cape bees are taken northwards to pollinate crops. If hives of Cape bees are placed beside hives of African bees, the Cape bee infiltrates the African colonies causing the African bees to destroy each other. The Cape bee is so deadly because of a unique characteristic: its workers can sometimes act as queens. Usually, worker bees are described as sterile females, but occasionally they lay eggs. In most species however, such unfertilised eggs can only develop into male bees called drones, while fertilised eggs develop into females (workers or queens). Only queen bees mate, so they alone can lay fertilised eggs. However, the Cape bees overcame this restriction. Their workers can produce female offspring, a feat they achieve by something similar to self fertilisation. Female bees are "diploid", which means they inherit two sets of chromosomes, whereas male bees are "haploid", inheriting one set. Both sexes inherit a set of chromosomes from the egg cell but a female bee also inherits chromosomes from the sperm cell that fertilises her egg. A Eggs are produced by a process called meiosis in which a cell divides to form haploid cells. One of the haploid cells develops into the egg and the other cell normally dies. But in Cape workers which lay eggs, the egg cell sometimes fuses with one of the other haploid cells produced by meiosis to give a diploid egg. Being diploid, the egg develops into a female bee. So in addition to the true queen, a colony of cape bees usually contains a few egg laying workers called "pseudoqueens". The disaster in South Africa's apiaries has occurred because Cape pseudoqueens can enter hives of other species. So a colony of African bees near a colony of Cape bees often plays host to several pseudoqueens. The violence in the African colony begins because the pseudoqueens emit the same pheromone as true queens. This produces a high concentration of the "queen pheromone" within the hive. Although Cape bees can tolerate the excess pheromone, it appears to drive the African bees into a stinging frenzy. Eventually, the African queen succumbs to the chaos and the cape bees take over the African colony completely. Beekeepers have reported seeing queens dragged from affected hives by gangs of workers. African and Cape bees look very similar so it is not clear if the Queen is deposed by her own workers or the invaders. With the Queen gone, the Cape pseudoqueens quickly fill the hive with their own offspring. Sometimes they even rear a true Cape queen to reign in their new territory. A Cape bee takeover would not matter to beekeepers but the Cape bees forage mainly in winter. This means that they cannot survive long outside their native area. In northern South Africa, colonies taken over by Cape bees starve to death within a few months. According to Michael Cooke, a commercial beekeeper in Cape Town, the northward spread of the cape bee has only occurred with the help of beekeepers. The problem is that many beekeepers can earn more by providing a pollination service to farmers than by selling honey, even if this means trucking hives hundreds of miles to client farms. Cooke gives several examples where Cape bees were taken far into northern South Africa, and African colonies were brought into the Cape area. At some point in the last few years, one or more African hives must have been "infected" by Cape pseudoqueens. The initial infiltration probably went unnoticed because the two species appear so similar. Although the affected African colonies were doomed, they clearly survived long enough for Cape bees to contaminate fresh hives. The contamination may have spread through northern South Africa because beekeepers from different areas sometimes congregate their hives in regions offering good foraging. By the time beekeepers realised something was wrong, the Cape bee invasion was epidemic. South Africa's beekeepers now hope that if Cape bees and African bees are kept apart, the problem will burn itself out. Designer Honey Bees usually collect nectar from a wide variety of plants over a wide geographical range, but until now, bee farmers have been unable to accurately specify plant sources for particular brands. Present day research techniques allow an individual sample to be traced back to a particulay type of plant and a particulay area by examining and analysing the pollen content. For more than a year now, Welsh beekeepers have been cooperating with a government-backed study run by the Palynological Research Centre within the Institute of Earth Studies at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. By sending samples from their hives, they are enabling the Centre to build up a database of information on Welsh honey, including the main source plants and the locations from which the bees drew the nectar in each case. Now the study is being widened to take in information from the rest of Britain, to extend the database to cover the whole of the United Kingdom. This may eventually enable manufacturers to market a variety of different honeys in the same way that winemakers have traditionally identified the type of vine from which their wine is derived. Further information from: Peter Roberts, Palynological Research Centre, Institute of Earth Studies, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed SY23 3DB. Article adapted from one in the magazine "Advance Wales" Science, Engineering and Technology from Wales, Spring 1993. DECEMBER 1993 A Merry Christmas & Prosperous New Year to All our Members In a year when so many of us have found varroa in our colonies, it's good to hear so many reports of good, even excellent crops. A beekeeper from Fleet reports taking around 100lb of honey off of a colony which, when subsequently treated with Perizin, yielded by his estimate (and I believe it) about 8000 dead mites. This demonstrates at least two things. Firstly that a quite heavily infested colony can produce lots of honey, and secondly the explosive rate at which varroa can multiply -- the colony was declared 'lightly infested' earlier in the year! Stay Alert! HBA Autumn Convention Held at Crawley Court, Hampshire Crawley Court is the home of National Transcommunications ltd., the 'new' name for the IBA transmissions control company. A recently purpose built complex on the site of a ruined stately pile, the venue offered excellent facilities. The convention itself was held in the theatre cum dining room area, where a stage with competent amplification at one end, was contrasted with a ploughman's lunch, tea, coffee and trade stands area at the other. The result of this combination was easy movement between talks and trade stands etc. and a very relaxed atmosphere. The honey show was held in the adjacent bar area and was very well attended. John Cossburn gave the first talk, "are we in control?", covering a multitude of aspects of beekeeping and indicating clearly that "sometimes we are, and sometimes we ain't". Subjects covered included subscriptions, honey quality (some are. some aren't), marketing (Nestl now own several major honey names), swarming, bee temper, varroa and so on. John talks are always good, and I think this may have been one of his better ones. Don Map's "Micro climate within the hive", was a presentation of his research so far into the changes of temperature, humidity, light and so on within the hive. This rather technical talk presented information about the changes within a very modest number of colonies throughout the season, and one cannot but ask whether the changes are triggers or effects of the events observed. Perhaps unfortunately, I along with many others suspect the latter. Be that as it may, Don's information was, to me at least, informative and possibly useful. It showed the way that temperature is maintained within the cluster during the winter, and the changes that occur with various events like swarming, throughout the year. I suspect however that Don, like many of his audience, think that he is observing the effects and not the cause of these events. David Charles' talk was entitled "Beekeeping Flora", and seemed to be mostly about sex, all be it in the nicest possible way. I tried to take notes, but there are speakers for whom notes just don't work, and David is one of those. A wonderful talk. I probably learned a lot, but I don't remember what it was. Living With Varroa Thoughts from this year's symposium. By Norman Hughes In introducing the symposium Andrew Mattheson, Chairman of IBRA, referred to the title, emphasising the importance that beekeepers should accept the fact that within a very short time, varroa would be present in every hive and therefore 'Living without Varroa' would not be an option. Since the first confirmation of varroa in Torbay earlier this year, IBRA had planned this symposium of international speakers with experience of living with varroa. Experience in Sweden has shown that individual bees in an infested colony would show a weight loss of up to 25% and that their life span would shorten with the increase in infestation which was likely to reach its peak in late summer. However, no effect on actual foraging has been detected. Brenda Ball gave an Able Description of the damaging effects of varroa and highlighted the fact that the mite is a carrier of many types of virus harmful to the bee including: Black Queen cell virus, Bee virus +Y, Bee virus X, Chronic bee paralysis virus and also Acute bee paralysis virus never, as yet, seen in the U.K., but which can kill in five days. The various means of treatment application were briefly described from smoke to particles, aerosols and atomisers, sprays and droplets to powders, systemic solutions and fumigant pads, together with the various medicaments/substances trialed & used abroad. Whilst Bayvarol remains the only certified medicament in the U.K. we were informed, from the floor, that the certification of Apistan is currently being processed. Clearly in the time available, a detailed description of all the treatments available was not possible, however, the following techniques of biomanagement are worthy of comment:- Drone Brood A means of enticing the varroa mite to lay in specific areas of the comb, by the introduction of an empty drone brood frame divided into three sections. Each section is removed and destroyed, when capped, in turn. This system can only be used for two consecutive seasons followed by an interval of one season, or we risk selectively breeding for worker laying mites. Trapped Queen A brood frame is modified so that the comb is enclosed in queen excluder. A hole is made in the comb so that the bees may move between the two sides of the frame, the Queen is placed on the comb and the assembly is closed. When capped, the comb is replaced and the system continued over a 21 day period. To ensure the minimum effect on colony performance, ensure that the period does not precede a honey flow but is completed by the end of August to allow the colony to build up in time for the winter. Lactic Acid Applied as a spray over the combs, two applications, seven days apart during November. Formic Acid DANGER: THIS SUBSTANCE BURNS THE SKIN! A fumigant able to penetrate and kill the mites within the capped cell whilst not affecting the worker brood but which is harmful to drone brood. Two methods of application are recommended:- In pad form, below the brood frames, requiring three applications at weekly intervals. This system is known to cause the loss of 5% to 10% of Queens. Following the use of a knock-down method (e.g. short-term Bayvarol) the combs containing brood are removed, shaken free of bees, and placed in an insulated box containing 50ml of formic acid for one hour. After treatment the frames are returned to the hive. Whilst the speakers spoke with confidence of their work over the past 10 to 15 years, it is clear that a lot of coordinated hard work is necessary if we are to succeed. Practical demonstrations are essential to increase understanding. The closure of Sparsholt Bee Department is a particular loss but your Association, together with both HBA and BBKA has a role to play and every effort will be made to inform and advise you in these matters. Swallows, Bees, and things A nature watcher describes how he watched as a swallow cruising in circles, dropped and recaught a honeybee an its beak three times before our observer scared off the swallow and the bee dropped, dead, to the ground. On close inspection, the bee was identified as a drone and so stingless. Bees and wasps are well protected from birds as, once stung, the bird learns to leave well alone, although birds such as flycatchers do rub them against a branch to 'defuse' the sting. Swallows, which very rarely land, are unable to do this so perhaps it is not surprising that they have been recorded as catching only the drones of honeybees. When catching a bee, a swallow must make a very rapid decision whether or not it is a worker or drone. This raises the question of insect copycats that are supposed to fool birds into thinking they are dangerous. If swallows can differentiate between castes within one species, can other insectivorous birds distinguish between the stingers and the mimics? Association Apiaries Rent For our members who keep bees within the Association's apiaries, we would like to remind you the a nominal rent of two jars of honey per colony is payable to the Manydown Estate, via David Purchase our Apiary Manager. The Manydown Company distributes this to their workers as part of a Christmas Box. Please pay your rent to David very soon so that he does not need to 'chase' everyone. Thank you. Honey Show Our honey show this year was again a success with a good turnout and an excellent standard. The rather eclectic mixture of fishkeeping and beekeeping was again very interesting, and enhanced still further this year by the presence of the Alton cage bird society. Fish, bees and birds -- whatever next? Actually, there is a great opportunity here for all these groups to relate with each other and with others. There is a strong feeling that the whole event could (should?) be built up into a kind of alternative crafts show. The local wine makers have been suggested, and I am sure that there are other groups who would be able to benefit from such an event. Watch this space and if you know any other groups likely to be interested, give Chris Mounty a ring! For ourselves, we had our usual fte display there, but this time the main 'goods' display was stock from the bulk buy scheme -- we didn't sell much (we didn't expect to) but we did get to show much of the stock and give members a chance to look closely at the goods. Members were around to chat to the public, encourage interest and offer information & help. Thanks to everyone who participated, whether by exhibiting or by helping with the running. Very special thanks to Tony and Norman for all the organising, and to Hazel Blackburn for judging. I hope to have Hazel back during the year to talk again on showing so that our standards can rise still higher. After two years with the same classes, we think its time that we varied things a little. We know that there is a desire for a proper set honey class (as opposed to creamed honey), but what else would you like to see? Suggestions don't need to follow the usual honey show conventions, so you could invent your own class and offer it to the Association. Telephone Tony Bamberger (850254) or Norman Hughes (464280) with your thoughts. Apple & Pear Pollination Because of the movement restrictions imposed since the discovery of varroa, many of the fruit growers in Kent are 'crying out' for help from beekeepers in the south. Normally, beekeepers come from far and wide, however at present, those from the north are reluctant to bring their bees south from where they will not be able to return until the restrictions are lifted. A couple of members have expressed an interest in going to Kent this year, but to make it worthwhile we would need a number of colonies and therefore several people. If you are interested, call me (Gordon) and I shall see if we can try to organise something. Music & Picnic '94 Once again, Sue and I plan to attend one of the National Trust's open air entertainments and hope that some of will join us. If you are interested, keep in touch and we will decide an event. If you have an entertainment preference, please express it. GS Thermostats At a recent evening meeting, Norman Hughes mentioned that he had experienced problems with the thermostats supplied by Steele & Brodie because they are not designed to work with leght bulbs (S&B sell a special heater too). Norman has since identified a type of heater which we believe will be reliable used in this way, and which is much cheaper. An ordinary immerion heater thermostat available from most DIY and plumbing stores can be bought for about 6 and is designed to handle 3kW! These seem to be almost ideally suited to our purposes -- the one I now have is calibrated from 10C to 80C, and they are remarkably accurate. One word of warning though; these thermostats are usually installed into the body of a hot water tank which is earthed, and there are two terminal block screws which whilst well tucked away are live, so sensible installation is important. If you are at all unsure about how to use a thermostat of this type please feel free to talk to me (Gordon) and I will be very pleased to advise. Thefts of Bees & Honey Sadly I have reports of thefts of both complete colonies of bees in their hives, and of honey in supers, from two areas around our district. The areas in question are Shalden, near the Golden Pot public house, and South Warnborough. My informant has lost colonies, that one friend has also lost colonies and that another friend has lost honey in supers. My informant also claims to be confident who is responsible but does not yet have proof. If you can help in any way, please contact me and I will forward a message. If you keep bees in the area, please make them difficult for anyone to steal! I guess that branding your colonies would help, as they would then be easily identifiable. I'm told also that some of the stolen hives also have positive identification marks, but that these are unlikely to have been noticed by the thief, so if you have recenly got bees cheaply from that area, we would very much like to know about it.