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Apis-UK Issue No.4 August 2002
A prime swarm of honeybees
A large swarm of honeybees so heavy the conifer tree bent over 60°
Photograph taken by Gregory Boon 74 Birkhall Road London. UK


EDITORIAL
This edition of the newsletter continues the previous format which gradually appears to be taking shape. I am pleased to see that more letters are being received as readers make use of this very interactive medium, and I hope that should any reader want to see in Apis UK any aspect of beekeeping that we are currently not covering well enough, they will write and let us know. A good deal of interest is being taken in the apitherapy articles and more organisations are writing in to tell us of their conferences and meetings on this subject.
I would like to thank Jeremy Quinlan for the two interesting articles featured in this months Apis-UK.

The China issue continues to affect us causing much Chinese displeasure but of course has the advantage of keeping prices high in the UK at least (see 'in the news'), and another line on the war against varroa is being researched ('in the news').

I read with interest that bee eaters have now been seen in the UK. True, only two of them so I understand, but they breed, and if they do indeed stay and breed, beekeepers will soon be seeing the wonderful aerial ballets that that these beautiful birds perform in the vicinity of apiaries - whilst bee eating! Apart from their colourful plumage, these birds are readily identified by their whistles. They sound exactly like those short burst whistles blown by referees at football matches. The ones with peas in them. I had one years ago called an Acme Thunderer. Here in Spain, the traffic cops use them to confuse traffic, and I still look over my shoulder with a sense of alarm when I hear a bee eater. I had occasion to do some in depth research into these birds recently and in fact they are not the demons they are often made out to be. A Russian report actually advocated giving them protected species status because of their effect on bee predators. They often do take many bee predators such as wasps, and prefer drones to workers probably because they are bigger. They are a pest though when you are trying to take a siesta by continually waking you up with their penetrating whistles. More wine at lunch is probably the answer.

Beekeepers with children can now show them something of interest on the web by clicking on to http://cyberbee.net and then going on to the Bees4kids section. Here they have bee games (including naughts and crosses), a bee maze and some excellent introductions to what bees do and a bee anatomy section where you click on to say a bees head, and up comes a description of its anatomy. Actually this part is very good for adults as well.

Further to these lessons on anatomy, if you want to see how a bee sees, then Andrew Giger, a US neuroscientist working on bee vision can show you. Many of us will have built a Von Frisch artificial eye from polaroid triangles, but this goes a lot further. See how a bee sees on http://cvs.anu.edu.au/andy/beye/beyehome.html

I hope you enjoy this months offering and do contact us if you have anything to say.

David Cramp. Editor.

NEWS FROM THE WEB
BRAINY BEES
Continuing with the anatomical/vision theme, a report in the magazine NATURE indicates that honey bees possess 'higher cognitive functions'. French researchers have found that honeybees excel at cognitive tests normally performed by lab primates and human volunteers. Martin Giurfa and four colleagues have demonstrated that these cognitive functions are not a privilege of vertebrates with much more complex nervous systems.
They have shown that bees are able to master abstract interrelationships specifically the concept of sameness and difference. Using a simple maze, the researchers marked sugar rich routes with a particular colour and empty routes with another colour. The colour at the entrance to the maze showed the bees which colour they would have to follow within the maze to get the sugar. So if there was yellow at the entrance, the branch in the maze marked with yellow was the route to the sugar reward. In a further experiment, it was found that the bees remembered this concept of 'sameness'. The entrance to the maze was marked by a vertical line. The sugar rich branch in the maze was also marked with a vertical line and the non sugar branch by horizontal lines. 70% of the bees flew down the path marked by the vertical line.
Abstract rules therefore can be mastered by the mini brain of the honeybee and Giurfa and his team have shown that complex behaviours may have a relatively simplistic nervous system architecture. For the full report, go to http://www.upliftprogram.com/h_spirit.html


FUNGI. THE LATEST VARROA DESTROYER?
Fungi could soon be helping beekeepers to combat varroa as recent research has shown that certain fungi can kill varroa just as effectively as chemicals currently used for this task. We all know that chemicals are not a long term solution to varroa control and many beekeepers especially on the continent (including me) have lost colonies because of reliance on these chemicals which because of overuse have caused the emergence of resistance to them. Research into the use of fungi is being carried out by Dr David Chandler and Dr Gill davidson of the Horticultural research International Association in Warwickshire. Dr Chandler states that interest in fungal controls is increasing as the public become more concerned about the environmental impact of pesticide residues in food.
The team has found more than 40 fungi that are able to kill varroa mites with 100 hours and although these fungi occur naturally, they are rarely encountered within a hive because the bees keep the hives so clean. The most promising types of fungi are now being tested to ensure that they are effective in the high temperature and humidity regimes of the brood nest.
The fungal spores kill the mites over a week long period by penetrating their cuticle and poisoning the mite - drying it out and damaging its cells and organs.
The research team is now is now embarking on a three year study in conjunction with the IACR Bee Research Unit in Rothamstead, Hertfordshire to identify the best strains of fungi and to find the best way of distributing them around the hive.
Honeybees are already used to spread fungi on some commercial crops so it may be easy to adapt these methods to spread it around the hive, e.g. by providing a fungi footpath that bees have to walk through on entering the hive.

STORMS ARE STARVING BEES IN CUMBRIA
Bees in Cumbria are being hand fed because bad weather is stopping them from eating enough. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/2172950.stm

CHINA ON THE OFFENSIVE OVER EUROPEAN HONEY BAN
A leading Chinese agriculture official has launched a bitter attack on the European Union for imposing a ban on Chinese food imports. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/2125192.stm

HONEY SHORTAGE KEEPS PRICES HIGH
It should have been a sweet year for the UK's honey producers. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/2165835.stm

RIGGED DEFRA CONFERENCE TO UNDERMINE GM-FREE HONEY STANDARDS
This news from John Salt the President of the Moray Beekeepers is produced in full at http://www.beedata.com/membersnews.shtml and rather than repeat what is readily available to readers on the web, I have only produced the first paragraph. This is to introduce overseas readers to the web site and to give them an idea of current GM discussion in the UK. If you want to hear more click on above.
The BBKA have published a statement on their website about the GM Conference on the 20th September 2002 http://www.bbka.org.uk
"Honey produced in the UK has remained GM free because beekeepers who wish to sell their honey to the British Honey Importers and Packers Association have been required to move their hives at least 6 miles from any GM crops. The normal flying distance of a honey bee is 3 miles, doubling this distance should ensure that all honey is GM free. 27 GM test sites thus prevent beekeepers from using just under 8000 square miles of the UK! Many beekeeping associations including numerous individual beekeepers have been highly critical of GM crops, have asked many embarrassing questions of government and have been major contributors to the anti-GM movement. The government sees this as an obstacle to the commercialisation of GM crops and wants the GM- free honey standards scrapped."

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Event organisers are welcome to forward dates and details of their events to the editor (by e-mail) for incorporation on this page.

4-6th September 2002 8th International Symposium on Hazards of Pesticides to Bees. Bologna, Italy. Contact Dr Claudio Porrini. Email: eporrini@entom.agrsci.unibo.it or Dr Gavin Lewis Email: gavin.lewis@jsci.co.uk

6th to 9th Sept 2002 - BIBBA Conference 2002 at Sheffield University Halifax Hall of Residence, UK.
The BIBBA conference at Sheffield University in September should be well worth attending. Anyone interested should contact the conference Secretary Tom Robinson Tel: 01904 626170 or Write to Tom at 71 Broadway, York YO1 4JP
Programme: Friday 6th September 2002 From 16.00 arrivals and registration. Evening meal from 18.00 hrs. 19.00 Informal talk
Saturday 7th September 2002 07.30- 8.45 Breakfast 09.00 Arrivals & registration 09.30 Bernhard Krause - "Beekeeping and Biodiversity in Europe project (BABE)." 10.30 Coffee 11.00 Janez Poklukar - "The search for Varroa resistance". 12.30 - 13.30 Lunch 14.00 Cecilia Costa - "Conservation and improvement of bees in Italy". 15.00 Coffee Split into two groups for next sessions 15.30 * Demo on the use of a computer to measure wing indices for morphometry * Visit to Apiculture Lab. 18.00 Evening meal 19.00 * Demo on the use of a computer to measure wing indices for morphometry * Visit to Apiculture Lab. * Half to half.
Sunday 8th September 2002 07.30 - 08.45 Breakfast 09.00 Arrivals & registration 09.30 Nicholas Chaline - "Genetic Studies of British Honeybees" (To be confimed) 10.30 Coffee 11.00 Janez Pokular - "Queen rearing in Slovenia" 12 ,30 - 13.30 Lunch 1400 Dr. Ruth Spinks - "Hygienic Behaviour Studies". 15.30 Coffee 16.00 Dr. Francis Ratnieks "Work organisation in the bee colony" 18.00 - 18.45 Evening meal for those staying overnight
Monday 9th September 2002 07.30 - 08.45 Breakfast 08.50 Sight-seeing tour of Derbyshire for those wishing to stay over on the Monday. Albert Knight BIBBA Groups Secretary

11-15th September 2002 - INTERMIOD 2002. Moscow, Russia. 3rd International Exhibition and Conference. For more information contact: AV Cherekaev. Email: expostroy@expostroy.ru

23rd September 2002 Japan Apitherapy Society and the Nonprofit Organization Japan Apitherapy Association invites you to our First Japanese Conference and Workshop on Bee Venom Therapy with International Participation About this Autumn's conference: Venue KINJYOKAN Hotel 10-33 Syowa Atami City, Shizuoka prefecture. Phone no: (+)81-557-81-6261. Date: September 23-rd. 2002 (Monday) - September 25-th. (Wednesday). Course fee JPY 33,000 (about 275 USD) (includes also hotel and meals).

14 to 18 October 2002 - The Apimondia Apitherapy Commission is organising an international apitherapy course in Cuba at the Callixto Garcia Faculty of Medicine in Havana
. The programme includes the biochemical composition of hive products, the techniques of producing medicines from hive products, and clinical practice. This course will be given from 14 to 18 October 2002 by the following professors:

Prof Théodore Cherbuliez, MD, President of the Apitherapy Commission
Prof Roch Domerego, biologist, Vice-President of the Apitherapy Commission
Prof Ramos, MD, Head of department at the Callixto Garcia hospital
Prof Cristina Mateescu, Doctor of biochemistry, Director of Research
Prof Franco Feraboli, Surgeon
Prof Amina Damiri, Chemical engineer
Prof Adolfo Perez Pineiro, biologist, Director of the Experimental Bee-keeping Station
Dr Adolfo Gonzalez Salvador, doctor, Head of department at the Frank Pais hospital
Dr Celia Alex Toro Aung, Head of department at the Callixto Garcia hospital
Dr Guillermo Lázaro Prado González, MD, Head of clinic at the Finlay Institute
(It is possible that other professors who are members of the Commission may join us at the last moment).

A level 2 programme will also be organised at that time for those who are already performing in apitherapy. If you want to subscribe at that level, please contact us.
For each level, the prices will be:
USD 500 for nationals of the following countries: Australia, Canada, the European Union, the USA, Japan, New Zealand and Switzerland.
USD 250 for all other countries.
This price includes:
40 hours of training
the certificate of attendance
the apitherapy CD-ROM
the various documents handed out during the course
tea and coffee during the breaks.

We suggest staying at the hotel Bello Caribe - three stars - for a price of USD 60 per day. This price includes accommodation in a double room, half board (breakfast and evening meal) and transport morning and evening from the hotel to the faculty.

We will arrange the allocation of double rooms in situ for people travelling alone who prefer to share a room. Single rooms will be available for a supplement of USD 25 per night. We kindly ask you to register before 15 September 2002. Reservations and payments by credit card may be made by telephone to +32 23 46 22 60, or by fax to +32 23 45 19 95 (indicate on the fax: the number of the Visa, MasterCard or American Express credit card and the expiry date). To register after this date, an additional charge of USD 100 will be levied on the price of the course. Download course programmes level 1 and 2
http://www.beedata.com/files/14-19oct2002level1.pdf
http://www.beedata.com/files/14-19oct2002level2.pdf

http://www.beedata.com/files/registration-symposium-apitherapy.PDF
Roch Domerego Vice-President.
Email: roch.domerego@euronet.be

The 2002 Show Schedule 14th, 15th, 16th November 2002 - The National Honey Show the biggest honey show in the world at Kensington Town Hall, Horton Street, London, England UK. The show schedule files are now available for downloading in PDF and Word97 formats. Visit the new look National Honey Show website for all the latest news http://www.honeyshow.co.uk

The National Honey Show Lecture Convention and Programme 2002
Thursday 14 November
1.45 Doors open
2.00 Opening Ceremony
3.00 Propolis - Future Medicine? James Fearnley
4.30 Pollen for Beekeepers Norman Chapman
7.00 Show closes

Friday 15 November
9.30 Show opens
10.30 Bee Breeding as a Group Activity Albert Knight
11.45 Fighting American Foulbrood - How New Technologies Can Help Dr. Elke Genersch
3.00 Sex in Honeybees, Humans and Flowers Prof. Robert Pickard
4.15 Household Poverty Reduction through Beekeeping amongst Uganda Rural Women Margaret Ogaba
5.30 GM Crops, Risk Assessment and Honeybees Prof. Ingrid Williams
7.00 Show Closes

Saturday 16 November
9.30 Show opens
10.30 Still Living with Bees Graham Law
11.45 Beekeeping and Honey Production in Germany Dr. Elke Genersch
1.15 The Gender Issues in Beekeeping Margaret Ogaba
2.30 National Honey Show Annual General Meeting followed by the Annual Meeting of the National Council
4.00 Presentation of Trophies and Awards followed by the Draw
5.00 Show closes
5.30 Collect Exhibits

2-7 December 2002 - Canada/United States 2002 Joint Apicultural meetings. This series of meetings brings together The American Association of Professional Apiculturists; The Apiary Inspectors of America; The Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists; The Canadian Honey Council; The Empire State Honey Producers' Association and the Ontario Beekeepers Association. For more information: http://www.honeycouncil.ca or http://www.ontariobee.com

THE BEE PRESS
BEECRAFT
The latest issue of Bee Craft offers a wealth of information, advice and items of interest for all beekeepers in its monthly columns. The following is its contents list:

Beecraft Aug 2002 Beecraft August 2002 Volume 84 Number 8
http://www.bee-craft.com/
Editorial
Beginner's Bazaar Matthew Allan, NDB
In the Apiary - honey bee nest selection Karl Showler
Fungal control of Varroa destructor Gill Davidson and David Chandler
Flying gametes Celia Davis, NDB
Bee kind to your back (part 6) Sarah Weaver
Beekeeping in Ireland Eddie O'Sullivan
In praise of large frames Robin Dartington
New beekeepers are out there! Paul Mann
III - matched bookends A Cynic
Ask Dr Drone
Letters to the Editor
Around the colony
Classified advertisements
Calendar

BEEKEEPERS QUARTERLY
August 2002 No 70

The latest edition of the Beekeepers Quarterly is out and apart from the editor's illuminating editorial, it is as usual packed with information, articles of interest and letters of controversy. The contents list is as follows:

Quarterly No.70 August 2002

NEWSROUND: Dr Francis Ratnieks promoted to Professor; obituary - T S K Johansson; demonstration apiary opened at Ulster Wildlife Centre; pyrethroid resistant mites found in Cornwall; varroa mites on export bees raise alarm bells in NZ; results of 2nd International Apicultural Photographic Competition; gallery opens in Czech Republic to commemorate the life and work of Mendel; honeybees trained to detect TNT; clustering beetle larvae impersonate female bees to infest their hosts; Beckett announces a public debate on GM crops; crop pollen spreads further than expected; GM potatoes deter one pest - but attract another; worm turns for US cotton farmers; BBKA/DEFRA conference and correspondence.
ASSOCIATION NEWS: National Honey Show - William Mundy retires, programme for NHS November 2002; Bees for Development - new names for for Troy Trust and journal; Bee Farmer's Association, Brian Stenhouse retires as Secretary - workload shared by several officers;
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
BACK TO BASICS: R Raff finds that keeping an apiary tidy can be quite challenging.
LONDON ROOFTOP BEEKEEPERS: Steve Benbow and Jill Mead - beekeeping auctions, Yemen and Crete have been part of the couple's itinery over the last few months - as well as managing their London stocks.
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENTS: America - Ann Harman, the honey queen and princess program; Canada - David Dawson, pollination using leaf cutter bees; England - Dr Nigel Payne, increasing stocks the Wilson way; Scotland - Nigel Hurst, the Royal Highland Show; Wales, Graham Loveridge, royal jelly and its efficacy; Ireland, Philip McCabe, Stoneleigh, IBRA Conference; The Netherlands - Ko Zoet, looking back; Brittany - Job Pichon, exotic bees; Italy - Alison Parnell, stolen bees; Spain, David Cramp, catching swarms - the Spaish way; Ukraine - Dr Alexander Komissar, maintaining baby nucs all the year round; Cyprus - Roger White, using small cell foundation to control varroa; Australia - Geoff Manning, quality assurance scheme/honey crops; Poland, Maciej Winiarski, swarm control and utilising swarms.
CONFLICT IN THE BEE HIVE: WORKER REPRODUCTION AND WORKER POLICING Dr Francis Ratnieks reveals that life in the hive is far from harmonious.
ORGANIC VARROA CONTROL USING APIGUARD: An effective, natural, safe and easy way of controlling varroa.
SCIENCE REVIEW: Janet Dowling FRES - finds out how drones behave in the hive.
BREEDING MATTERS: John Atkinson NDB
COLLECTORS CORNER: Beekeeping Treasures, Geoff Hopkinson NDB looks at an early example of a masonic firing glass. The BKQ website URL: http://www.beedata.com/bbq.htm


ARTICLES
ANAPHYLAXIS
Written by John Yates. It is only recently that the BBKA have addressed, in their examination requirements, the question of how to proceed when anaphylactic shock follows a bee sting. The exact wording in the Husbandry Certificate syllabus is: Describe precisely the action to take when a person who has been stung by a bee, exhibits a severe reaction or anaphylactic shock.

Definition of anaphylaxis
A generalised reaction with signs and symptoms of difficulty in breathing, skin rash, palpitations, confusion, vomiting, faintness caused by a falling blood pressure. All or some of these signs and symptoms occurring within minutes of a sting indicates a severe reaction (anaphylaxis) requiring emergency medical attention. Do not attempt to take the patient to hospital, you may get caught in a traffic jam. Call an ambulance which is equipped with a siren and flashing lights to speed through the traffic. The paramedics should have the necessary drugs for emergency treatment. Time is of the essence. A mobile phone is a great asset in these circumstances.

First aid treatment while waiting for the arrival of the paramedics
1. Move the patient well away from the bees.
2. Give an injection with an Epipen which contains epinephrine (which used to be known as adrenaline) if this is carried by the patient. Drug info from: http://www.healthanswers.com.au/drugdata/appco/00099321.asp
3. Remove any dentures that are loose or ill-fitting.
4. Keep the airway clear.
5. Release any tight clothing especially around the neck.
6. Lay the patient in the recovery position. Please see below.
7. Keep the patient warm.
8. Stay with the patient at all times. Death can occur due to circulatory failure or airway obstruction.

The Recovery Position

The recovery position

The recovery position is the correct position in which to place a victim who is breathing, while waiting for help to arrive. Do not put a person in the recovery position if you suspect that he has any form of spinal injury or other fractures.

To put the patient in the recovery position

1. Lie the patient on his back and kneel beside him. Tilt the head back and lift the chin to open the airway.
2. If he is wearing glasses, remove them; loosen his shirt, belt and pants.
3. Straighten both legs and place the arm nearest to you at right angles to the patient's body, elbow bent, with the palm of the hand uppermost.
4. Bring the far arm across his chest and hold the hand against the victim's cheek, palm outwards. With the other hand, grasp the furthermost thigh and pull the knee up, keeping the foot on the ground.
5. Support the victim's head by keeping the hand pressed against his cheek with one hand. Roll him towards you with the other hand holding the bent knee of the farthermost leg.
6. Tilt the head back to open the airway, adjust the hand to support the head.
7. Adjust the uppermost leg so that the hip and knee are at right angles.
8. Check that the victim's breathing and pulse are regular.

It is my belief that very few beekeepers are 'au fait' with the above requirements and the place where such an emergency is most likely to happen is at an association apiary. Therefore, it is suggested that all association apiaries should have instructions, as outlined above, printed and prominently displayed at all their meetings together with a list of vital telephone numbers. You never know, it might just save someone's life.
Speed is the essence in such an emergency!


INSECT FLIGHT
Written by Jeremy Quinlan
. These are notes of a talk given by Dr Robin Wootton of Exeter University where he is Reader in Insect Biomechanics; the talk was the first at the Cambridge BKA's One Day Meeting on 16 Mar 02.

For flight, it is necessary to accelerate a sufficient mass of air downwards. To achieve this, an aerofoil is required; this speeds up the air above and slows it below, so generating lift. An increased angle of attack (increased inclination to the direction of the oncoming air) increases lift but if the angle is too great the aerofoil stalls.

In powered flight, we can move the aerofoil using a fixed wing and a separate motor, or rotary wings (helicopters) but birds and insects have to flap. They also have to twist their wings to minimise the downward counteractive force generated by their wing upstroke. This is simple for birds that have muscles in their wings, but insects do not.

Flapping brings its own problems; the bee body is not particularly streamlined and the wings are small so wing loading is high and rapid flapping is necessary. Another problem is the inertia of the wing itself.

Muscles typically require a nerve impulse to trigger contraction. Normal muscles cannot contract more than 100 times a second, but bees beat their wings about 200 times a second and some midges may beat up to 1000 times a second. They can achieve this because of a special kind of flight muscle that can contract many times for each nerve impulse, being stimulated to do so by being stretched by the opposing muscle. This type of muscle stores elastically some of the energy expended in each stroke, which considerably reduces the cost of flight.

Even so, the flight muscles appear to be surprisingly inefficient, and fuel costs are very high.
Work done in a wind tunnel has shown that bees can be induced to fly using the visual stimulus of rotating stripes. It was possible to determine how much oxygen was used, and hence how much energy was used in flight. Bees turned out to have an efficiency of only 5% while helicopters are 30% efficient! This rate of fuel consumption equates to 18 gallons of beer an hour for a man!

High speed movie photography and computer analysis has made it possible to discover exactly how insects move their wings in flight, and what aerodynamic mechanisms they use. It is now clear that they twist the wings in order to generate lift from the upstroke as well as the downstroke. In the 1990s, it was discovered that hawkmoths, and probably many other kinds of insect, generate a leading edge vortex which delays stall as the vortex moves out towards the tips. Work on fruit flies shows that their wings twist before the bottom of the downstroke; this generates extra lift by creating a kind of back-spin, and then by catching up with and using the vortex which they have created and left behind on the downstroke.

It is fascinating to compare the way different insects have developed different solutions for the best effect for them. Locusts have four wings, which only create useful forces on the downstroke, so they can only fly fast. The four wings of damsel flies twist dramatically and generate lift on both upstroke and downstroke, which permits them to fly slowly and hover. Bees have a bigger fore wing and a smaller rear one, which hook together to operate as a single aerofoil. The solitary bee Anthophora looks like a small bumble bee, but hovers much more skilfully than bumbles do - it is not clear how, or why they need to be such excellent fliers.



MICROBIAL CONTROL OF VARROA

Written by Jeremy Quinlan
. These are notes of a talk given by Brenda Ball of IACR Rothampstead at the BBKA Spring Convention at Stonleigh in April 2002. This was a 4 year collaborative project with other researchers from Harpenden and Horticulture Research International, Wellesbourne, funded by DEFRA, now coming to an end. The lecture reported progress on the search for and evaluation of a biological control agent for Varroa as an alternative to chemical treatments.

Brenda began by giving us the background. Entomopathogens are agents that primarily attack insects and these fall into 4 main groups; these are nematodes (as used to control slugs and vine weevils), baculoviruses (used in forestry), bacteria (eg Bacillus thuringensis - used to control a variety of insects including Colorado beetle and wax moths) and fungi. Their use avoids the accumulation of residues from chemical inputs, they are effective against insecticide resistant pests and can be used as a "classic" biological control agent (exotic pest, exotic control). Their advantages are that they occur naturally and are common, are generally host specific, environmentally benign, can be applied using conventional methods and may be a component of an integrated pest management (IPM) plan, perhaps allowing two controls to be applied at once.

Their disadvantages are that they are affected by environmental conditions (temperature and humidity cannot always be just right) and interactions with other organisms. Often, they are slower to act and they are generally more expensive to produce than chemicals.

An initial feasibility study showed that, of the possible agents for the biological control of Varroa, entomopathogenic fungi had the most potential. Fungi are very common in nature; it is estimated that there are 1.5M species, 750 of which are known to attack arthropods. They have a wide intra specific diversity - the same species of fungus in a different area can differ in its physiology or host specificity. It is remarkable that the behaviour of flies infected by one such fungus is affected so that they climb to the top of grass stems in their death throes, allowing the wind to disperse the spores more widely. A commercial fungal spore preparation, "Vertalec" is used effectively against greenhouse aphids. Fungi are particularly successful in such contained environments. Honeybee colonies also provide a defined habitat where the environmental conditions are maintained within certain limits and selected fungi may prove effective against the mite.

The entomopathogenic fungi are hyphomycetes and all have a similar life cycle. The spore is the means of dispersion and infection; when it lands on a suitable host, it begins to produce a germ tube that penetrates the host cuticle. The specificity of a fungus lies in this key interaction between the spore and the host body surface. The chemical signals from the host cuticle can stimulate spore germination and, if other conditions, such as temperature and moisture are suitable, the fungus can penetrate into the host haemocoele where it can then grow throughout the body. On the death of the host, the fungus erupts through the body and produces specialised structures, which release more spores to infect other individuals. The entomopathogenic fungi can kill a wide range of different species of insects and mites, may be applied in various ways and are generally easy to grow on artificial media.

Because no fungal natural enemies of Varroa were known, the research project began with a worldwide search for fungi active against other mites and ticks. 40 isolates from all over the world were identified, catalogued and preserved for use. A bioassay was then designed which would allow us to test the ability of individual fungal isolates to infect and kill Varroa. To be able to compare different isolates, the experiments had to be undertaken in a standardised, reproducible manner. The 40 isolates all killed some mites. The fastest killed in 3 days. 18 killed all the mites in 7 days. The fungi found it difficult to get a foothold on the mites' backs but easier on their undersides where plates join. The fungi were most effective when relatively high numbers of spores were used under conditions of high humidity and at the low temperature of 25oC. The next stage was to test the best 9 isolates against Varroa under more realistic hive conditions. Again Varroa proved highly susceptible to fungal infection at 30oC and 40% RH even when lower doses of spores were used. Fortunately, they prefer drone brood on the periphery of the brood nest and so cooler than 35oC.

Because we want to use these fungi within bee colonies, it was important to determine if they were harmful to bees. Some certainly were capable of infecting and killing bees at high doses of spores but others caused no infection. The isolates were also tested against ladybirds, other beneficial insects and some lepidoptera with generally negligible effect.

The ability of fungal isolates to infect and kill Varroa, to survive and grow at the relatively high temperatures within honey bee colonies and to be harmless to bees are some of the criteria used to select the most promising candidates. Some 5 isolates were identified as worthy of further research. This is estimated to take a further 3 years. We need to know more about the biology of these fungi, what formulation will preserve their infectivity most effectively, how they can best be applied and how the spores persist and spread in the colony. A promising start has been made but much more work remains to be done. If further research funding is secured, at the end of the next phase of the project it is hoped that all the information will have been obtained to form the basis for commercial development. Only commercial interest and investment will allow the work to be brought to a satisfactory conclusion. Is there anyone out there who has the money and wants to take the project forward?


THE POLLEN SHOW
Witten by Mathew Allen. I have lived in our present house now for over ten years, and every summer I have not opened my eyes enough to see a remarkable sight which takes place most summer evenings. The previous owner was an elderly who had been unable to look after what had once been the best garden in the street. That first summer we were taken aback by some of the plants which emerged from the jungle, among them being the very striking evening primrose, which opens as you might suspect (well done Sherlock) in the evening. I had assumed that this was to entice night flying moths, but I was wrong (as usual mutters Peter the pedant, but read on.

Anyway, the occasional rogue evening primrose still grows here, and one evening at 8.30 pm while I was in the garden, I caught a glimpse of a movement among the flowers. As I watched, the flowers were opening in front of my eyes. The flower is rolled up in its bud like an umbrella. First it twists and the petals unfurl a little. Then the sepals peel right back - you can see the movement easily. After that, the petals fold out, and as they do so, the stamens and stigma push forward. The whole process takes only a few minutes. I called the family and bored them with my discovery.

So night after night I sat and watched them but I still wasn't looking properly. It took my eight year old daughter to show me the next bit. 'Look dad, the pollen is like a spider. Ugh! All sticky'. And sure enough, it is. It has trails of threads. Time to do the best thing and consult an expert. Mary Percival. Floral Biology (Publisher Robert Maxwell MC!) is an old book but readable. She says that honeybees get into a real mess trying to pack evening primrose pollen onto their legs, and soon learn not to bother with it. In fact the real pollinator is a solitary bee called Onagrandrena, which has hairs on its legs that match exactly the length of these sticky threads. Some species of these bees are so specialised that evening primrose is their only source of food.

Another thing about the evening primrose is the amount of pollen it releases. Brush past it in the dark and you find yourself streaked with yellow. This reminds me of a time when as a mere youth, I was importuned by a Turk who wanted to sell me the finest smoke of all time. Pure cannabis pollen. Wonderful smoke. Smarty pants (me) didn't believe it. How do you collect the pollen Huh? The reply was that the men of his village put on leather trousers and run up and down through the fields until their trousers are caked. They take off their trousers (I presume), scrape off the pollen with razor blades, then start again. Rather a mind boggling picture! Always on the lookout for new products to expand our catalogue, I toyed with the idea of a new range of pollen collectors in suede, chamoise and nu-buck, small. medium, large and huge. Response from head office was less than enthusiastic.



LETTERS

Dear David,
Will you please remind your Apis-UK subscribers that NOW is the time to think of entering some of their honey products for the National? Anyone can enter, anyone can win! So give it a Go!

You may be interested to hear how the plans for the 2002 National are going. For the past eight or nine months, the various committees have been beavering away, and now their hard work is coming to fruition. The 2002 Schedule has been printed, and should be in the hands of members and past exhibitors by the time they read this. In any case, they can find the schedule on our website www.honeyshow.co.uk Look it up, and discover lots more about the National. If by any chance they don't receive a schedule, get in touch with me, and I will send them a copy.
Admission to the Show this year is £10, BUT that one £10 admission ticket will cover admission for all the three days, and on the Saturday it is valid for two people. To be really canny, anyone can ask me for an Advance Admission Ticket, and this will cost them only £8, and this will also be valid for all three days. (Unfortunately, there is a misprint in the Schedule about the cost of these Advance Tickets. The price really is £8.)
In addition to this, I shall be very happy to hear from any Associations who are considering a group visit to the Show, and I am sure that we can come to a suitable arrangement.
We are also offering Complimentary Admission Tickets for those who have joined a beekeeping association during this year. Ask your association secretary to get in touch with me, with the names of the new people, and I will send he secretary the tickets.

The National is a great Show. We look forward to seeing you there.
Hon General Secretary The Revd H F Capener

Registered Office. 1 Baldric Road, Folkestone, Kent CT2O 2NR
Fax/phone. 01303 254579
Registered Company No.266722
Registered Charity No.233656
Email: nathon@zbee.com
Website: www.honeyshow.co.uk

Dear Editor,
I have recently downloaded issue no 3 of the newsletter, and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Reading J Quinlan's letter, it never ceases to amaze me that people will go to great lengths to make negative comments and indeed whinge without making any useful contribution to to new ideas. I particularly liked Ian Coleman's article and look forward to hearing more. Keep up the good work. Noble effort as my old mum would say.
Best wishes, Nigel Hurst. (Editorial note. Jeremy Quinlan is back on board with contributions)

Dear Sir,
We would like to promote with your help, among your local beekeepers, biologists and health related professionals a better knowledge of the medicinal properties of bee products (Apitherapy).
We would also like to offer you the possibility to join our programme and our Apitherapy Internet Course (AIC) given in over 39 countries all over the world by Dr Stefan Stangaciu (MD), our Romanian bee products and Apitherapy expert and also president of the German Apitherapy Society. We think this could be a great opportunity to learn more about a field that may provide you with natural products that can be used to treat (and cure) over 250 different diseases and amongst them some of the most "frightening" ones. If interested to co-operate with them in any way, please let us know.
Sincerely yours Nicoleta Radu. AIC registration department. Email:AICregistration@imail.softnet.ro

Dear Editor,
At a recent Virginia USA state beekeepers' meeting Dr Wyatt Mangum of Mary washington College presented a lecture on queen introduction. He has a large number of observation hives, and witnessed much balling of the queen, mostly due to the presence of the attendants in the queen cage. He has a number of very good photos that he made of the queens being balled. He strongly recommended that removal of the attendants should be standard practice when introducing a new queen to an existing hive. You can contact him at: wmangum@MWC.EDU James Fischer.

Dear David,.
I'm a beekeeper from Germany and I have had bees since 1975 and found the first Varroa in 1982, when I had 24 colonies. Most beekeepers here use Formic Acid, Apistran or Perizin (cumaphos) to protect the bees but the Varroa are almost resistant or the treatments are very time consuming. I have no problems any more because I'm using the Oxalic Acid crystals and a vaporizer. Oxalic Acid is a natural acid and in rhubarb, beans and several other plants. There are no residuals in the honey, beeswax and propolis.
I have quite a lot of information regarding the control of the Varroa Mite using Oxalic acid, but as I'm not a native English speaker, it's difficult for me to translate so many pages.
If you are able to read German, you can go to the following website: http://www.mellifera.de/oxneu.htm where you will find the latest news and test results or go to: http://www.members.shaw.ca/orioleln .
I was told by a Russian beekeeper who emigrated to Germany in 1991 and several others, that controlling the Varroa with Oxalic Acid Aerosol is very popular in Tajikistan and Kazakhstan where funds and options are very limited.
It has been my experience, working with an vaporiser and oxalic acid since the late 80s, that unlike Apistan and Cumaphos, there is no resistance problem. Oxalic acid is not a chemical treatment. It works by destroying the mite's suction ability, stopping it from feeding from the bee. Effectively, the mite starves to death. It's so easy to use and takes only 3 minutes for each colony and the price for each treatment is $Euro/USD 0.01. Many of my colleagues in Germany were interested in Amitraz from France only to discover that the mites developed a resistance to that also. Likewise, Gabon Strips used in Czechoslovakia.
Formic Acid can be difficult to work with as temperatures both inside and outside the hive as well as calculating the correct amount, all contribute to its effectiveness.
An error in calculation can lead to a loss of up to 25% of the queens or to many mites left for the next season. 210 mites in the Fall, followed by a mild winter and an early breeding start in the spring, can result in approx 210,000 mites at the end of the year.
Several international beekeeping journals make mention of the Russian mite-resistant bees. They are in high demand and the Russian's know it!
If this was true, it would be the end of the mite problem but the fact is that there have been mites in Germany since 1982 and there is no escape. Some bee races have stronger cleaning impulses than others and that's the reason some can live with a certain amount of mites in a colony.
All that is necessary is to take a swarm in an empty hive and treat them twice with 3g of Oxalic Acid 7 days apart. 14 days later and the only mites you'll find are dead ones.
My major problem is re-infection by bees from nearby hives and drones from up to 40 km away.
We are very close to having the 'perfect' bee: not aggressive, swarm lazy and a good breeder. We should be grateful, not impatient. Our bees are working hard for us.
Bees have been around for 65 million years and evolution will take care of the man made problem......one day. Greetings Manfred Schreiber

OBITUARY
Alan Berkeley
written by Gareth Howell.
At some risk of boring you with a story of my late friend Alan Berkeley who sadly died just before the sun came out on 10th July. He did not suffer fools gladly so when I asked him a twittish question about mice, he invited me in to his house, which was a bit scruffy and I hesitated to sit down on account of the accumulated dirt. ( It was perfectly clean dirt; don't misunderstand)
He sat me down in the lounge and gave me instructions to look at a hole in the skirting board near the fire. I kinda wondered why, but did as I was told while he went to get a cup of tea. I've got a fertile imagination but I am sure that while he was out making the tea I saw some whiskers and a snout looking out from the hole but thought no more of it. When he brought the tea through he was a bit abrupt and said "now look at my trouser leg" and he lifted the hem of the leg with his pocket and suddenly the whiskers and snout materialised into a fairly large mouse, scampered across the room and disappeared up the trouser leg. Meanwhile of course I realised that I was expected to show fear of the mouse and promptly jumped on the table to (It may have been on the chair) ensure that it, or one of its friends, did not dash in and chase up my trouser leg. In normal circumstances a mouse would not have bothered me but to see a house mouse go up somebody's trouser leg worried me, as I did not want it up mine!!! I am a bit ticklish and I might have dropped the tea cup. I think it eventually appeared in his hand a few moments later and I shuddered to imagine by which route across his admitted large corpus the animal had learnt to travel. Seeing it in his hand I got down from the table but kept my eyes on the hole in the skirting board until I left the room. I had to drink the tea.
He looked at me as though I was personally responsible for the sinking of the Titanic. "You'll never make a beekeeper" he roared "unless you can understand mice!" Still with an honours in Greats from Clare College Cambridge, Alan was ideally suited to the task of Bee farming. He was there with Sylvia Plath who wrote about bees. He had a very low opinion of Sylvia Plath who knew nothing about bees, although her executors make large fortunes from selling her poetry now, one or two of which were about hives at Clare. Alan was recently interviewed by a group of A level students from Christ's Hospital, his own Alma mater, a nearby school, about the poems and their accuracy. They got top marks for their research.. For Alan to die at such a young age and with so much still to offer, was a tragedy for all of us. He will be greatly missed. He leaves two younger brothers, Martin and Colin, both of whom are
expert on apis mellifera and the natural world.
I was lucky to be able to count him as a friend. Martin keeps a dozen hives near the Golan heights in Israel. May they be endowed with fine crops. Alan, we imagine, has gone to a drone meeting place to meet Bill again, ( his childhood mentor in life sciences) and await the finest queen of all. We think they are having the time of their lives. Requiescat in pacem.

HISTORICAL NOTE
Concise lesson on pollination from the 19th century
To make a prairie you need a clover and one bee. Mary Dickinson American poet 1830-1886

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