Apis-UK September 2003

EDITORIAL
September usually brings with it a quickening of pace after the heat of the summer. Some of you will be clearing up after what I hope was a successful harvest and others will be about to commence your harvest. Local Associations will be preparing their winter programme of activities and talks, annual Christmas dinners at some fine restaurant or pub, and perhaps some excursions to events of interest such as the National Honey Show in November. In their associations, the UK beekeeping scene is most fortunate and although I know well that most are somewhat taken for granted and some are badly supported, when you look at it all from where I stand, beekeepers in the UK have a national treasure in these busy local organisations. They advise, instruct, educate, entertain and form a bedrock of good intention in an increasingly less well intentioned world. So it is with pleasure that I see the report (below) of the West Sussex BKA describing their innovative and successful West Sussex Honey Show. And other UK organisations, I suspect all running on a shoe string winning medals at Apimondia.

The Northamptonshire BKA received a Bronze for their web site; Beecraft received a Bronze for the magazine, and IBRA received a Gold for their undoubtedly first class Journal of Apicultural Research, and for Lesley Goodman’s stunning book ‘Form and Function in the Honey Bee’. And finally, Vita (Europe) won a Gold for their stand to complete an excellent year for UK participants. The amount of work that must have gone into getting these awards is staggering. The financial rewards in most cases nil and the satisfaction enormous, so certainly Apis-UK offers its congratulations and shares your satisfaction.

The letters section of Apis-UK and the search for answers section appear to be gently expanding, both in content and the amount of feedback required from us. All this is good, but I know that out there, are many undoubted experts on a variety of beekeeping subjects. If you know an answer to a question, do write in and tell us.

The new Honey regulations for England came into force on 1st August and we reproduce those below. Apart from a few ambiguous statements, they appear to be clear (whether you like them or not) but is I think it sad that it is becoming increasingly difficult to simply label a jar of honey with the words, ‘Pure Honey’.

We return in the news section to elephants again with something I bet you didn’t know, and also to wasps and the extraordinary research showing that certain wasps can recognise each other visually. I have mentioned before that whilst realising that the title of the newsletter is Apis-UK, research into other hymenoptera, i.e. wasps and ants, and indeed other bee species is I believe of interest to many beekeepers and much of the research is bound to throw up information relating to honey bees. So I believe it of value to continue reporting on these items. Can bees recognise each other visually? It would be interesting to know.

In this issue I have started a recipe column. Just one a month and I would like to stick with the unusual ones that use honey as an essential ingredient. I can’t promise that there will be one every month but I’d like to try, so I need help on this and if anyone has any interesting honey recipes, let me know. Overseas recipes are just as welcome and I know that many Eastern European and Mediterranean countries have used honey far more so than in the UK, so come on out there, do write in. The same goes for the poetry section. Again I can’t promise a poem every month, but I’ll try. So write in and get published. As I mentioned in a previous issue, it may bring you fame and fortune. Today’s poem comes from a distinguished Serbian poet and I’m pleased to be able to publish it here.

So with all these things to think about, here is the September issue of Apis-UK. I hope that you enjoy reading it and that you will keep in touch. David Cramp. Editor.

NEWS

IN THE MEDALS
The Northamptonshire Beekeepers’ Association (NBKA) was awarded the Bronze Medal (3rd place) in the Web Site contest at the International Apicultural Congress, Apimondia 2003, held in the Cultural and Congress Centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia with the theme “ Beekeeping a way of living”.
APIMONDIA is an International Federation of Beekeeping Associations that works to create links between everybody involved in the Beekeeping world. It promotes apicultural, scientific, technical and economical development in all countries and the fraternal cooperation of beekeepers’ associations, scientists and of individual beekeepers worldwide.
The Apimondia Congress, which is hosted by a different member country on a bi-annual basis, attracts delegates and contest entries from all over the world. The NBKA is congratulated on its Bronze Medal achievement, awarded in the face of international competition. Brian Hughes, Webmaster Tel: 01604 752681 www.northantsbees.org.uk

The Northamptonshire Beekeepers' Association (NBKA), founded in 1882, to serve the needs of beekeepers in the county, was granted UK registered charity status in 1987 with the object of 'advancing the education of the public in Apiculture in the County of Northamptonshire’. Meetings are held on the second Saturday of each month and a warm welcome is extended to those interested in the craft. For details of meetings visit the web site or contact Margaret Holland on 01327 857328. Apimondia 2005 will be held in Dublin. http://www.apimondia2005.com/

This was judged to be an “outstanding success” by the visitors and organisers alike. 1,364 members of the public attended over the two days, showing a high level of interest in the various displays of beekeeping equipment, demonstrations of honey extraction, the hive of live bees and the very wide range of honey and honey-related products.

The objective of the West Sussex beekeepers was to add new life and fun to honey shows, by attracting those beekeepers that normally shun the traditional classes, by offering them classes that did not require hours and hours of careful preparation. At the same time they appealed to the general public, showing them the “inside” to beekeeping and offered honey tastings in abundance, thus promoting the high-quality products available in the county.

Visitors were offered a variety of honeys from more than 10 producers and through the weekend more than a quarter of a ton of honey was sold, showing that the people of the county really appreciate a premium product.

The competition classes attracted 338 entries from 73 entrants, both figures exceeding the organisers’ projections. The highest entries were attracted by the new classes. 2 Jars labelled ready for sale attracted 28 entries, this being judged not by a honey show judge, but by the New Product Development Manager of the sponsors, Natures Way Foods (a foodstuffs professional with no knowledge of honey) the criteria being visual appeal and taste. A class for the lightest versus darkest honey (included merely to show the public the wide variety of honey colours) attracted 25 entries and the “Black Jar” class (green in this case) judged on taste alone attracted 36 entries.

A “lucky draw” offering an afternoon’s beekeeping with an experienced beekeeper attracted more than 40 entries (many from outside the county) and the lucky winners will be introduced to the bees in the next week or two.

The event was commercially sponsored by Natures Way Foods and City Sign Centre and as a result of the funding available, a high standard of presentation in the promotion of beekeeping as a craft and of the superb honeys available in the county was achieved.

A Beekeepers’ Festival Dinner was introduced into the event and this took place at the venue on the Saturday evening,. The restaurant offered fine home-cooked fare with a menu designed to appeal to beekeepers throughout the county and this aspect of the event is expected to become an important feature of the Festival.

Judges were Derek Daniels for honey, Mary Benson for culinary classes and Charles Coleman for the commercial classes.

The West Sussex Honey Festival 2004 will be held at Manor Nursery, Runcton, Nr Chichester on Saturday and Sunday 18th and 19th September. Further details available from John Stevens at ieem@compuserve.com or 01243 533559.

THE DRAFT HONEY (ENGLAND) REGULATIONS 2003
Council Directive 2001/110/EC relating to honey lays down European compositional standards that a product must comply with in order to be described as 'honey'; and provides additional labelling requirements for these products. Download 40KB PDF

NEW BEE SUBSPECIES FOUND
Are you a fruit grower and need a honey bee that can and does operate at low temperatures (40s and 50s F)? Then read on. As most of you know, the range of Apis mellifera around the globe is very extensive, but now it appears that their range is wider than previously thought. Steve Sheppard at the Washington State University has recently discovered a new subspecies of honey bees in the Tien Shan mountains of North West China. He has named the bees Apis mellifera pomonella and its status as a sub species is based on morphology and molecular data. The finding puts the range of Apis mellifera 1200 miles further east than previously thought. The bee is regularly used for apple pollination in this low temperature area.

NEPOTISM IN THE HIVE?
Despite strong theories for its existence in animal societies, clear evidence of nepotism within highly social insect societies such as ants, bees and wasps appears to be rare. In a recent paper published by the Royal Society, a scientist observed labelled workers harassing duelling queen bees. The research showed that the workers that harassed duelling queens were neither more closely related or more distantly related than were workers selected randomly from the colony. Worker/Queen relatedness was determined using DNA micro satellites. Workers did not behave nepotistically by hindering half sister queens more than full sister queens.

ELEPHANTS SMELL OF HONEY
Those with children will know all about the teen years of their young charges, and the problems associated with hormones and heaven knows what else, but did you know that elephants go through a similar process. Young teenage male Indian elephants give off an odour that smells remarkably of honey, and indeed researchers have found that their exudates do contain several chemicals also found in honey. The smell has also been likened to that of a mixture of flowers, and ancient Hindu poetry describes bees flocking to these secretions which come from a gland just below an elephants eye. It appears that this odour tells others that the young elephant is broadcasting his immaturity and unwillingness to fight for dominance and mates. Later on in life, in their later teens all this changes when the odour changes to what has been described as a thousand male goats in a pen. It is acrid and we are advised not to get it on our fingers because it won’t wash off. (I must remember to try and avoid that situation. Ed)

INSECTS COLLECT RESIN TO KEEP DISEASE AT BAY
Bees are a prime example of animals that live in crowded, warm and moist conditions, i.e. conditions helpful for the rapid growth of harmful bacteria and fungi. So how do they keep these problems at bay?

In the ant world, Swiss researchers from Lausanne University have found that European wood ants Formica paralugubris, gather grains of hardened sap from conifers for use in the nests. They report that a large nest can contain 20 Kilos of resin. The researchers made up nests with resin and nests without resin and found that those without resin had three times as much fungal growth in them and considerably more disease causing bacteria. Ecologist Marcel Lambrecht of the Centre of Functional Ecology and Evolution in Montpellier, France says that he believes that this is the first animal to use plants to protect its whole society. He adds that bees too collect resin but that it was thought that this was just to repair their hives, but it may also be medicinal. The full report is contained in Nature. Ecology letters, 6, 19-22, (2003). (I had always thought that the use of propolis by bees was both to seal hives etc and to protect the hive from fungi and disease, but now I come to think of it I’ve never read any research on this in bees. If anyone knows better, please write in, and in the meantime I’ll be looking up some references. Ed)

WASP STING KILLS MAN
Anthony McGuire, aged 49 died recently within 5 minutes of being stung by a wasp. A severe reaction made his throat and tongue swell up. His widow said that he had been stung before and his arm had swelled up but hadn’t heard of anyone dying from a wasp sting. (Up to 10 people a year in the UK die from severe allergic reactions to wasp and bee stings. Ed)

HEARING AID USER ATTACKED BY WASPS
Pensioner Mr Ron Packer of Stroud was recently attacked by wasps after disturbing their nest whilst pruning a hedge. He moved away but said that the wasps came after him and clustered around his hearing aid, stinging him eight times.
Duncan Collett-Fenson from the Association of Independent Hearing Healthcare Professionals said that there could be a connection. If the hearing aid had come loose during his gardening, then it could have been prone to feedback. “That would have produced a very high pitched whistling or buzzing that wasps could have picked up on”. He added that hearing aid users shouldn’t worry too much about this.

Whilst on the subject of wasps, I’ve added this report from November last year in the Royal Society B proceedings (issue 269). (Ed)

GOOD LOOKING WASPS
An animal behaviourist at Cornell University in the USA has discovered that certain types of paper wasps can recognise from facial features and abdominal markings. This is believed to be the first study to show that wasps can recogniser kin through markings and will visually reject unfamiliar wasps. Elizabeth Tibbets found that queens and workers form a power structure that determines how food is distributed, how work tasks are assigned, how work tasks are assigned and who will be allowed to lay eggs. Such a stable hierarchy would be more easily organised if individuals of different ranks had some sort of visual identity. She interrupted the rankings by altering the markings and appearance of wasps with paint and found that these wasps were the subject of aggression and fights broke out amongst former friends. She added that the wasps also use chemical cues and because of these nest mates were ultimately able to distinguish between friend and foe and aggression declined.

HONEYBEE SEX GENE DISCOVERED
In last month’s issue of Apis-UK, there was a short report on the honeybee sex gene that has recently been discovered. This article just amplifies that report and adds further information. (Ed)

The scientists involved in this discovery were Martin Beye and Martin Hasselman of the Martin Luther University of Halle Wittenberg, Germany and Robert Page and Kim Fondrik at the University of California, Davis in the USA. They isolated a honey bee gene, the Csd (Complementary sex determiner) which exists in 19 alleles. Female bees have two copies of csd and male’s only one. They worked out the DNA sequence of 4 csd alleles and found that they were highly variable, but the same alleles were found in both males and females showing that there are no alleles for ‘maleness’ or ‘femaleness’. Studies on developing eggs showed that in both males and females, the csd gene becomes active about 12 hours after the eggs are laid and remains active throughout development. In collaboration with Stig Omholt of the Agricultural University of Norway, the team used RNA interference to block activity of the csd gene. Female eggs developed into insects with male gonads. The same treatment had no effect on male eggs.
The researchers say that the csd gene was the major ‘invention’ that enabled the evolution of ants, bees and wasps. Because males have just one set of genes, sisters that work together in the nest share more genes in common with each other than they would with their own sons and daughters.
Such a gene was mooted more than 50 years ago and Robert page has spent 15 years looking for it. (He expected it to take 10). Jay Evans of the US department of Agriculture says he is really exited about it - ‘It really is a grail’.
On a side note, it is believed that fire ants currently invading the US suffer from high levels of sterility, probably because they brought only a few versions od csd with them from their South American home.
(Strangely enough, the UC Davis News and Information sheet ended by including the following in the final paragraph: Wild bees mate only once, in flight to their new nest!!!

Whilst on the subject of Genes, an interesting report in Nature magazine demonstrates the discovery of a gene that tells plants when to bloom. This should be of interest to all beekeepers bearing in mind that flowers are what bees and beekeeping are all about.

FLOWERING GENES
Exactly when to flower is one of the most crucial decisions a plant makes. Snowdrops push up through the last snows of winter, bluebells bloom in spring, and clematis hang heavy in high summer, all thanks to one gene, researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, California have found. This discovery could help manipulate food crops to better suit the seasons of equatorial regions. The gene is called CONSTANS, and enables plants to measure day length and so to tell when to flower. As you can imagine, this could be one of the most crucial, if not the most crucial decisions a plant has to make. If it blooms too early in the year, the insects needed for pollination may not be around; if too late and there won’t be enough time to make seeds and fruits before winter comes again.

The amount of protein produced by the CONSTANS gene rises and falls under the control of the plant’s 24 hour biological clock. In a series of experiments on Thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), researchers show that a plant starts flowering only if sunlight falls on it when the amount of CONSTANS protein is above a certain threshold, usually reached in the late afternoon.
The quality of the light is also important. Two light receptors must be activated. Called cryptochrome 2 and phytochrome A, they respond to blue and red light, respectively.
When all these criteria are simultaneously fulfilled the CONSTANS protein flicks on the plant’s flowering switch, another gene called FLOWERING LOCUS T. This activates a cascade of hundreds of genes to build flowers. This idea that flowering depends on concurrently detecting daylight and knowing that it is late in the day is not new. It was proposed in the 1930s, but was little understood.

Now, by understanding its exact molecular mechanism, scientists can see how the system can be adapted for different plants. Those that flower as spring begins have an earlier time window for the light activation, either by having a lower threshold for CONSTANS protein or by increasing its production more quickly; later-flowering plants, have a later one.
An almost identical system of genes operates in plants that, unlike Arabidopsis, flower as days shorten rather than lengthen. These include rice and several other major world food crops. Genetic manipulation may now make it possible to produce varieties for countries whose seasons pass too quickly for their current crops to thrive. The full research details can be found in: Yanovsky, M. J. & Kay, S. A. Molecular basis of seasonal time measurement in Arabidopsis. Nature, 419, 308 - 312, (2002). And: P. CONSTANS mediates between the circadian clock and the control of flowering in Arabidopsis. Nature, 410, 1116 - 1120, (2002).

THE BEE PRESS

BEECRAFT
Beecraft September 2003 Volume 85 Number 9
The latest issue of Bee Craft offers a wealth of information, advice and items of interest for all beekeepers in its monthly columns. http://www.bee-craft.com/ The following is its contents list:

Editorial; Integrated pest management for beekeepers Glyn Davies (Chairman BBKA); Getting Started: bedding down for winter Margaret Thomas NDB; Stingless bees: The other honey bees Adam Hart PhD Tributes: Cecil C Tonsley; I had a dream Bill Spence; A fluid economy Celia Davis NDB; Something different in cooking Michael Young; In the Apiary: bee books by women writers (1670-1905); BBKA examinations John Hendrie.

BEE WORLD Vol 84 No 3, 2003
Contents: Guest Editorial;The conservation of Bumble bees; Detection of transgenic soyabean material in pollen substitute and honey samples; Presence of deformed wing virus and kashmir virus in Africanised honey bee colonies in Costa Rica infested with varroa destructor; The removal of capped drone brood: an effective means of reducing the infestation of varroa in honey bee colonies; beneficial nematodes: a potential threat to honey bees?. Plants for bees; Antigonon leptopus; IBRA News; Bookshop; World News; Obituary; Letters to the Editor.

BEES FOR DEVELOPMENT JOURNAL
One years subscription (four issues) UK£20 or download only subscription UK£18 which includes back issues. September 2003 No.68 issue has the following contents: Inside information; Practical beekeeping; Trees Bees Use; Project news from ICIMOD; Zoom in on Slovakia; Look and Learn Ahead; Notice Board; News around the World; Book Shelf. Cover photograph © Bees for Development. Website URL: http://www.beesfordevelopment.org and now in Spanish URL: http://www.beesfordevelopment.org/spanish

ARTICLES
More sound information for beekeepers. In this issue John Yates writes on feeding bees which I believe to be a more complex subject than it seems. (Ed)

FEEDING HONEYBEES
It is often said, and I believe it to be true, that anyone needing to feed their bees in the spring should not be keeping bees; they have fed their bees inadequately the previous autumn. The nonsense of giving the bees a cake of candy on Christmas day still persists in some parts of Devon and, no doubt, in other parts of the country. I hear also, from time to time, other horror stories about feeding such as feeding fermenting honey, feeding heated honey, feeding hydrolysed sucrose by using this for making soft candy and feeding partly hydrolysed sucrose by boiling with cream of tartar or vinegar as the basis for a making a solid candy. Many of the bakers’ fondants are used for feeding as well. Reference to Bailey’s book on Honeybee Pathology will condemn them all as toxic to bees and there is only one food that can be safely administered and that is pure refined sucrose. Unrefined sugars are toxic including semi-refined beet sugar.

Many years ago, MAFF as it was then, the time when it took a real interest in honeybee husbandry, conducted a survey on winter losses and found starvation to be the major cause. I doubt if much has changed. So let us explore for the rest of this article a few facts about feeding colonies of honeybees.

The reasons for feeding a colony sugar are shown below:

a) To provide adequate stores for winter (rapid feeding).
b) To provide emergency stores in the season between colony inspections (rapid feeding).
c) As a means of administering drugs (generally rapid feeding).
d) To stimulate the queen to lay (usually slow feeding).
e) To prevent starvation when the colony is about to succumb (rapid).
f) To enhance wax production and the drawing of foundation and comb (slow or rapid depending on circumstances, eg. a swarm on foundation is fed rapidly).
g) When a colony has an inadequate foraging force, eg. an artificial swarm which is short of stores (rapid feeding) or after spray poisoning losses.

a) There should be no spilling or dripping of syrup anywhere in the apiary.
b) Precautions should be taken to prevent robbing (reduced entrances and bee-tight hives).
c) Feed should only be administered in the evening just before dark.
d) No sugar syrup should find its way into the supers and be mixed eventually with honey for extraction and sale.
e) Only pure white refined granulated sugar should be used.

Generally, for the last century, two types of mix have been recommended, a thick syrup for autumn feeding which will be stored more or less immediately and thin syrup for spring or stimulative feeding which is to be consumed without storing. Most of the literature quotes the following:

Thick - 2lb sugar to 1 pint of water gives 61.5% sugar concentration
Thin - 1lb sugar to 2 pints of water gives 28.0% sugar concentration

Since the bee requires a concentration of 50% for it to digest and metabolise the sugar then the mix should be:

If sugar syrup is to be mixed with cold water, it will be found difficult to obtain a complete mix with 2lb to 1 pint and if it is mixed with warm water sugar crystals will remain in the bottom of the feeder which are too dense for the bees to use. The so called ‘thick syrup’ can be forgotten and so can the so called ‘thin syrup, which requires the bees to increase the sugar water ratio, by manipulation, before they can use it.

Because of this cold mixing problem we use a mix with cold water of 7lb to 5 pints in an old washing machine (top loader with central agitator). The concentration works out to be 52.8%, less than 61.5% and hence giving the bees a bit more work to do ripening it to 80% for storing and sealing. As we feed for winter immediately after extracting in August, this causes the bees no distress as they have plenty of time to get their larder in the order they require it before the cold nights set in. We picked up this tip of 7lb to 5 pints years ago from Mrs.Payne in Sussex the mother of the Payne brothers who, at that time, were bee farmers; I think mum prepared the feeding syrup for a lot of bees!

I am of the opinion that, for the sake of simplicity, the very simple metric mix of 50:50 would satisfy all bee husbandry requirements and thick and thin can be relegated to the past.

The amounts of food to be fed in an emergency and for winter seem to be the most important; they are discussed below.

Emergency feeding
It is necessary to know the amount of food that a colony requires during the season so that, after an inspection, the beekeeper can determine whether it shall require feeding or whether it has sufficient stores to the next inspection. The worst case must always be considered and that is when the colony sends out its foragers and they are unrewarded in their search for food.

A flying bee uses 10mg honey per hour while foraging for an average time of 5 hours per day. If the colony has 13,000 foragers (1/3 of the total population) and the next inspection is 7 days away, then the colony should have 10lb of liquid stores.
ie. 10lb = (13000 × 10 × 10-3 × 5 × 7) ÷ 454

Therefore, if the colony has less than 10lb of stores it may require emergency feeding if there is no income and the weather is inclement. The amount required is likely to be small, ie. a few pounds.

The same considerations are applicable to nuclei and many a nuc has died out due to starvation because of the beekeeper’s ignorance of not understanding the little colony's food requirements. If a colony or a nuc is on the point of starvation the bees will be in a pile on the floor of the hive unable to move because their blood sugar levels are too low. Spraying them with a 50:50 solution of sugar water is an amazing sight to see. In a matter of a few minutes as they clean each other up their blood sugar levels increase very rapidly and they start to move. It is not long before the whole colony is on the move and back onto their combs and reciprocal feeding is underway again. At this stage a feeder can safely be put at the top the colony knowing that they will have sufficient energy to reach it. Thankfully, beekeepers that get into this pickle generally do not repeat the exercise.

Winter feeding
We are alarmed and distressed by the large number of beekeepers who either don't know how much food a colony requires for winter or, if they do know, have no idea how to calculate how much it should be fed. The losses each year in the UK due to starvation amount to many thousands of colonies according to the MAFF survey mentioned above. If the RSPCA knew more about bees they would be taking some action against the offending beekeepers.

The calculation is a simple bit of arithmetic and the starting point is a colony inspection in August. Each frame in the brood chamber is inspected and the amount of liquid stores estimated on the basis that a BS frame when full and sealed with honey weighs 5lb. A Commercial frame holds 7lb.

A strong colony requires c. 35lb to see it through to the spring without feeding in the early months of the new year, the time when stores are used up very quickly. To illustrate the simplicity of the calculation, assume the colony has 25lb of stores after the inspection. The colony requires 35 - 25 = 10lb of additional stores or the honey equivalent thereof. How much sugar must be fed in syrup form to provide the equivalent of 10lb of honey? 1lb of honey contains c. 0.8lb of sugar; therefore, 8lb of sugar should be fed in syrup form. If the colony required 15lb of additional stores then the amount of sugar = 15 × 0.8 = 12lb sugar. It is as simple as that and yet very few beekeepers take the trouble to do the job properly and many colonies starve to death each winter.

I hope that your colonies come through the winter but if you have doubts have a look, on a good day in February/March to determine whether there are any sealed stores. Don’t move the frames just look between the frames after a puff or two of smoke has sent the bees down. JDY.

My widowed mother moved into Forest Hill in order to pursue her calling as Dressmaker. Being always busy at the sewing machine had no option but to leave her son to amuse himself. I quickly discovered the Museum the Apostle Clock but more than that the bees in the observation hive.

The clock with it's twelve Apostles passing in front of the figure of Christ at 4:00 on a Sunday afternoon each one in turn bowing his head except for the last one. That was of course Judas who irreverently turned his head away and bowed in the opposite direction. The clock was of great interest to visitors and always attracted a large crowd

Then it was back to the bees where I would stay until the Great Gong signalled closing time and time to depart. Little did I know in those far off days that I would take up Beekeeping and take such an active part in the running of the hive some forty years later.

The hive was first installed in the Aquarium in 1905. In those days it was jutting out into the area giving access to both sides, but in never survived the winter, so just after the war it was turned around with one side against the wall in the hope of giving the bees a chance to keep warmer during the winter and although it did survive the occasional winter that was not the complete answer.

Mr Mitson one of the Bromley Branch members was about to give up the management of the hive and in 1974 I took over. It proved to be quite a task. Housed on six standard frames it frequently required the removal of frames of brood in the summer and in the winter opening up to replace the empty frames of stores was no mean task. A situation which was not to last.

Then came the bombshell. The Aquarium was about to be upgraded and there was no longer a place for the bees. "Would you please take them away".

Four years passed during which time I submitted drawings for a new hive but to no avail. Finally public demand demonstrated how popular the bees were and I was called to a meeting to present my proposal. At this stage a new CUE (Centre for Understanding the Environment) building was being built and it was proposed to install the hive there. I built a new hive, not the measly six BS frames but eight big Commercial frames.

However the hive never really took off. Due to various reasons it was never stocked at the right time of year and didn't build up enough to survive, but the new site was not to last.

The Horniman was awarded a huge grant and a big rebuilding scheme was undertaken. Once again the bees were removed but this time only temporarily. This gave the opportunity to carry out a few modifications to the hive and it is now installed in a new gallery known as the Environmental Room and is now open to the public. The bees were installed at an ideal time, April and although they swarmed a couple of months later the new Queen was marked and they have every prospect of getting through winter at last. The only problem is treating for Varroa which is not easy in a single layer hive. No doubt, like the many other problems this one will be solved in the goodness of time.

Keith Malone posed the question about mite resistance:
I believe the varroa mite IS less likely to develop resistance to formic acid or thymol in comparison to pyrethroids (Apistan, Bayvarol etc), organophosphates (Checkmite, Perizin) or amidines (amitraz - Apivar) but I don't think it's to do with different levels of efficacy against the varroa mite. Many essential oil/organic acid treatments have given very high efficacy, often as good as or higher than Apistan or Checkmite (before resistance).

The three classes of pesticide listed in common use as varroa treatments have very specific modes of action, the different pesticide classes working on separate, precise processes during neuronal transmission in the mite. Thickening of the cuticle is one mode of resistance to a pesticide but it is very much a secondary method of resistance (common in flies for example). The primary modes of resistance in insects and mites are detoxification of the substance and modification of the site of action of that substance. If the selection pressure, in the form of a pesticide has one specific site of action, and the selection pressure is intense (eg same pesticide applied over many generations) a population of insects/mites may develop a method to block that substance or detoxify it within a (relatively) short space of time. That resultant population would be called resistant.

Thymol and I believe formic acid too, are not specific in their mode of action. Thymol is a protein denaturant (it is believed to break down cell walls and disrupt general cellular processes. It would appear to be more difficult for a target pest to develop resistance to such wide-acting substances. The development of resistant populations also usually coincides with extensive use of the one chemical class. Essential oils and organic acids have been used successfully for quite a while in Europe but have not yet taken over the world as varroa treatments. Even as they do become more popular and necessary I don't see resistance looming. I hope not anyway; I'm trying to sell Apiguard here. It would be a little frustrating, after 8 years of product R&D and registration to now find varroa resistance to thymol. All I can say is that when I started the development of Apiguard in Italy back in 1993/4 pyrethroid resistant mites were being decimated in the Apiguard trials. Today, Apiguard in Italy, for example, is having exactly the same effect with no sign of resistance. Let's hope the theory holds. Dr Max Watkins, Vita (Europe) Limited, 21/23 Wote Street, Basingstoke Hampshire RG21 7NE UK Tel.: +44 (0) 1256 473177 Fax: +44 (0) 1256 473179 e-mail: max.watkins@vita-europe.com web: http://www.vita-europe.com

FACT FILE

ATTRACTING HONEYBEE SWARMS
Some don’t engage in it. Some don’t even believe in it, but for many beekeepers attracting swarms is a natural part of their beekeeping year. To attract the scout bees and then hopefully the rest of the gang many devices are used and many theories expounded. Old hives or nuc boxes with old comb in them are provided by some beekeepers and others use empty hive boxes smeared with that yellow lemon paste that doubles as a mosquito repellent but which is for some reason supposedly irresistible to swarms on the loose. Now of course, more sophisticated pheromonal devices are used, but what really works?

Some interesting research published in 2001 provides some answers to all this and was carried out by researchers from the Carl Hayden Bee Research Centre in the USA. They examined rigorously the influence of bee pheromones and odours in the nest site seeking behaviour of bees. They also noted that those odours present in the environment and not of bee origin were neither attractive nor repellent to swarms and the same was to be shown of odours of bee diseases. These observations highlight the importance and specificity of odours in the reproductive process, especially during nest seeking. (Bang goes my lemon paste theory. Ed) The findings also highlight the fact that because of this specificity of odours, beekeepers that use other attractant substances are basing their swarm attracting more on luck than judgement. So what did they discover? When given a choice between otherwise identical cavities, all swarms chose those which contained Nasonov pheromone. (Although this would be unlikely to occur in nature, it does show the attraction of the pheromone. Ed)

When given a choice, 8 out of nine swarms chose cavities containing the complete blend of the pheromone over cavities containing a blend without nerolic acid.
Old combs and hive residue odours are clearly attractive. When combined with Nasonov pheromone, all swarms (13) selected cavities that contained hive odours either with or without old comb, showing that in these cases the old comb was not of importance. When the pheromone is present, swarms appeared attracted solely on the basis of its presence. With absence of pheromone, the role of odours from dark old comb becomes important. All 11 swarms chose cavities containing comb over cavities containing either hive odours alone, or no hive odours.
When given a choice, swarms generally chose cavities containing propolis over those which did not.
In summary, the research supports the role of hive odours, in particular the role of old comb in attracting swarms where no Nasonov pheromone is present. When Nasonove pheromone is not present (as would be the case in nature), and if comb from a previous colony is absent (also a likely scenario in nature), propolis odours and odours from colony residues provide an attractant which bees prefer over other environmental odours. This latter case is the most likely natural scenario.

The full report can be seen in JAR 40 No 3-4 (2001). IBRA Pheromonal and hive odour attractants for honey bee swarms. Justin O Schmidt. (I’ve still got three pots of lemon paste, guaranteed to attract swarms, which are now for sale. Ed)

A HONEY RECIPE
This new section aims to provide a recipe each month which uses honey as an essential ingredient but which is fairly unusual. Help would be appreciated! We’ll see how it goes. Overseas recipes are welcome.

The following recipe is Andalucian and I came across it at Antonio’s Restaurant (Antonio Banderas), in Malaga. I might add that I was only at such a posh place because someone else was paying. (Ed)

Take a good sized aubergine. Slice it thin. Coat the thin slices in a light batter. Drop them into a pan of boiling oil (a light oil such as girosol or maize) for a very short time until the batter very lightly browns. Bring them out and shake off any oil and serve hot or cold. (Best hot). At this stage, these things are fairly tasteless but come alive when honey is lightly poured over them. ie, Don’t drown the aubergine in honey. The best honey by far for this dish should have a strong taste such as chestnut. This dish which is called ‘berejenas a la miel’ is eaten as an aperitif. I can’t claim to be the best cook in the world but this one worked.

HISTORICAL NOTE
One of the questions asked recently in the Search for Answers concerned the ability of bees to keep the hive at the right temperature despite high temperatures outside. In the old days, little was known of this but there was advice on what to do if things went wrong. It is also a comment on their knowledge of swarming!

"The next year, 1781, he (a Mr Clothier of North Cadbury, Ed) killed the greatest part of an old hive, in putting back the hackle to let the sun shine full against it thereby to make them swarm, (although it always has a contrary effect;) the sun penetrating through the hive drove the bees from their combs, which being exposed to the sun, melted and dropped to the stool; the honey ran out in several large streams to the ground; the greatest part of the bees were killed, but every one of the bees in both hives might have been brought to life, unless bruised to death, by putting them into a large pail of water, and after they have soaked for some time, straining off the water through a cloth to keep back the bees. Then add fresh water to them, and after some time strain them off again, and then lay them in the sun, where they will soon all recover, and fly to their queens in the hive. I discovered this first by bees that had lain in water for more than thirty hours."

LETTERS

Dear Mr Cramp,
I have missed being reminded of Apis. So This month I searched and have now got June and July issues. Thank you David Yale.

David, occasionally these high tech things go wrong and a ‘crash’ occurs. This occasionally means that we lose part of the subscriber data list which can’t be recovered. It is annoying in the extreme. However, I’m pleased that we recovered you as a reader, so thanks for persevering.
If any of our other readers find that they are not reminded of the publication of an issue, then something similar will have happened. In a case of this sort, I would urge you to re subscribe via www.beedata.com. We value your participation. (Ed)

Hi David,
Please could you tell me if it is legal to keep bees in your back garden. We live in a terraced property, and have one of the long, 'cottage' style gardens enclosed by eight-foot brick walls.
As you will see, I know next to nothing about bee-keeping, so am exploring the possibilities of doing so. Many thanks for your advice. Best Wishes, Janet.

Janet, I wasn’t sure of the regulations in the UK either, so I asked an expert who informs me that there are none. But of course that won’t stop people complaining to the council/police if your bees become a nuisance to others, especially if you put too many hives into a small area. It is best therefore to contact your local bee keeping association who will give a mountain of advice on best practice, and also they will advise on how to keep bees, how to acquire them, which hives to purchase etc and they will probably know of someone willing to oversee your initial efforts. (Ed)

Dear David,
I am expecting to visit Hyderabad India in late November/early December does anyone know of beekeeping in this area? It would be nice to make contact and being some information on keeping bees in a different climate back to the uk. Keith Hooker BA MPhil (Pollination) BBKA Practical keith.hooker@tecmn.co.uk

Dear Editor,
Can anybody help me with the new honey regulations that are about to come into force? What best before date are you recommending? Honey doesn’t go off!! Regards John Carlisle.

This letter was directed to the BBKA website and then forwarded to Apis-UK. The Honey (England) Regulations 2003 are now in force (1st Aug), and despite the complex and specific language employed by government departments, they do actually define things in a clear unambiguous fashion. The only fault I can see is that they do not define a filter (Para 4 (2), and Schedule 1 (8) except to say ‘honey obtained by removing foreign inorganic or organic matters in such a way as to result in significant removal of pollen’. There are filters and there are filters and this in exactitude could lead to mistakes in labelling. I would imagine that really fine industrial filters using diatomaceous earth would come under this regulation whereas a 40X40 filter wouldn’t. If anybody can clarify this, please let us know and in the meantime, I will ask for more information. As for ‘sell by dates’, the new regulations don’t mention any and so if in the UK the previous regulations gave one, that is still in force. You are right to say John that honey doesn’t go off exactly; there are examples of edible honey being found in Ancient Egyptian tombs that are over 2000 years old, but changes do occur under many conditions of storage such as HMF levels etc but as these tend to happen fairly rapidly anyway a sell by date for honey is in my opinion just a sop to consumer demand for such things. In Spain, 4 years is the norm on labels. However I will try to clarify this and if there are any experts out there particularly the BBKA, please let us know. The Honey regulations (England) can be downloaded from the news section above.

And finally, can anyone help Keith Hooker on his visit to India? (Ed)

IN SEARCH OF ANSWERS SECTION
In the last two editions of Apis-UK, readers have asked several questions about the activities of bees in their colonies. Whilst no one has yet come forward with an answer to the hollow bumble bee question, there are some theories proposed for the other questions. Conventional wisdom and inputs from experienced beekeepers supplies the following answers to firstly the question about bees in large numbers flying near the hive during an afternoon resembling a swarm about to leave. This is likely to be early learning flights of house bees about to advance onto guarding or foraging roles. These flights are commonly known as play flights although I suspect that the participants are in deadly earnest. If you can manage to watch one particular bee during this period, you often see that it will move progressively away from the hive in ever larger circles, eventually disappearing from sight. Because of the mass of bees and with new bees arriving all the time, it is almost impossible to keep an eye on any one bee and so it is difficult to understand what they are doing exactly. Researchers have got around this however and in a report from the University of Illinois At Urbana Champaign together with the University of Greenwich and Rothamsted and which was completed in 2000, they explain how.

The report mentions that like aviators, honey bees preparing to forage, learn their skills in a series of pre flights to learn the landscape. As they move too far and fast to see for long with the naked eye, a device was developed to help track the bees. As the bees take these training flights, they cover an increasingly large area around the hives. They do this, not by taking longer flights but by going faster and faster. These orientation flights were interesting to scientists who wanted to learn how bees learned navigation which they say is a highly demanding task for a creature with a brain the size of a grass seed. To track the bees, they used harmonic radar developed by the Greenwich group so as to track insects in flight. The bees themselves were given to wear, a tiny tag that re emits a unique harmonic of a particular radio frequency. When the bee flies, the signal can be discriminated from background radar reflections, simply because only the bee responds with the frequency being broadcast in a field.

They found that these orientation flights which are most probably what our reader was seeing, allow bees in a progressive way to visit different positions and view different, and larger, portions of the landscape around the hive. What they also want to find out is why some bees appear to need to take only one flight, whilst others take up to 17 orientation flights prior to becoming a forager. (I hope that this has given you more of an idea about these flights which I believe was what you were seeing. Ed.)

Another question received and published concerned bees hanging out of the hive in large bunches. An excellent photo accompanied the query. This could very well have been a cooling device and the experts tell us that this is probably so.
Honey bees are known to be able to cool their nests as impressively as they can heat them. In 1954, Lindauer placed a hive full of bees in full sunlight on a larva field in Italy, the temperature of the nest never rose above 36C even though the outside temperature rose to 60C and the temperature in an empty hive nearby rose to 41C. The bees need to be able to control overheating because a rise of just 2 to 3 degrees C in the brood nest can seriously disrupt brood undergoing metamorphosis. They control overheating in a graduated response to rising temperatures.

Firstly the nest cluster expands to permit a greater circulation of air. Secondly, they provide lines of strategically placed fanners throughout the hive to provide a strong ventilation effect. Thirdly, they use the undoubtedly very powerful effect of evaporation, by using collected water.

Seeley, quotes an observation by Chadwick in California in 1931. Mid day temperatures were 48C. Large amounts of water were used by the bees for cooling. By 9pm the outside temperature had fallen to 29C and all was well. But at mid night, a desert wind caused temperatures to rise to 38C. The bees were unable to forage for water and wax combs softened and collapsed. Finally, under conditions of high temperature and humidity, the bees may evacuate the nest and form a mass of hanging clustered bees, just outside the nest entrance. This of course reduces heat production in the nest and facilitates ventilation. It has been noted that this often occurs when the coolest part of the brood nest reaches more than 34C. (I believe that this is what our reader was seeing. My bees are always doing this especially as evening starts and they have been fanning all day. At any rate, I hope that this gives you an idea of why you saw what you did. Incidentally, the way bees place water droplets and the way in which they regulate these activities are remarkable and are well explained in books such as ‘Honeybee Ecology’ A study of Adaptation in Social Life, by Thomas D Seeley. Ed)
Now what about the mystery of the hollow bumble bees. Any answers out there?

BEEKEEPING COURSES
Michael Thiele has sent us the following update on his news of courses on ecological beekeeping which can be applied for on the web.

Certificate courses WS 2003/04 at Virtual Global Academy. The new program is out. Registration for certificate courses WS 2003/04 at Virtual Global Academy not only in well proved ecological beekeeping. New topics are: Organic Agriculture, Nature Conservation/Recultivation besides social Medicine/Apitherapy and beephilosophy.

There are some changes regarding first time registration and costs: Registration need to be send by regular post together with curriculum vitae. No registration fee is necessary from WS 2003/04 onward. After reception of admission letter you just need to pay the fees for the courses you have registered for. 2003 August 11 T+T Consult Public Relation-Team More Information: www.thiele-und-thiele-consult.de

Ipswich & East Suffolk BKA Introduction to Beekeeping 2004
The course will run on four successive Monday evenings from 8th March, between 7.30 and 9.30pm. This is the classroom, theoretical, part and will be held at Martlesham Heath. We intend to follow this with an afternoon handling bees from 2 to 4pm on Saturday 3rd April and between 11am & 4pm on Sunday 9th May. Our fee is £20.00. While handouts will be provided, they do not cover all you need to know. A general book on beekeeping is a necessity - start reading this as soon as possible! There are several good ones such as Ted Hooper’s “Guide to Bees & Honey” @ £10 or Clive de Bruyn’s “Practical Beekeeping” @ £20 (retail £24.95). If you have any queries, please contact the course tutor, Jeremy Quinlan, by phone at 01473-737700 or email at: jquinlan@freebie.net.

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.

13-15 November 2003 The National Honey Show Download PDF 15KB NHS 2003 The National Honey Show is held at Kensington Town Hall, Hornton Street, London, UK. You will be able to download the show schedule from the National Honey Show site from the support pages URL: http://www.honeyshow.co.uk

22-24 November 2003 - 1st International Beekeeping Congress of CARI Louvain-la-Neuve
What Future For European Beekeeping?
The aims of this congress are to: analyze the situation of beekeeping in the European Union; estimate the importance of the present changes and the impact that they have on our way of beekeeping. The challenges to cope with are numerous (declines, quick evolution of genetics, new techniques of environmentally friendly beekeeping more friendly that involve less curing products, accession of new European partners (PECO), development of quality products, new products, the place of the honey bee in the environment). We must cope with these challenges if we want to defend and develop our way of beekeeping. During these two days we shall participate in debates based on several real examples presented by lecturers coming from several countries of the Union and from the PECO. A simultaneous translation to the French language is provided. An exhibition of posters showing the state of development of research in various subjects as well as an exhibition of new equipment will also be shown. It is possible to reserve a meal on the spot for those who want.

Provisional program
Saturday 22nd November 2003
THE HONEY BEE
09.00 Official Congress opening
09.20 Which bee for tomorrow?
12.00 Lunch
14.00 The honey bee in our environment
16.00 To an integrated way of beekeeping
Sunday 23rd November 2003
THE PLACE OF THE HONEY BEE AND BEEHIVE PRODUCTS BEEHIVE IN OUR SOCIETY
09.15 Reception of participants
09.30 The honey market
12.00 Lunch
14.00 Tracks for tomorrow
16.00 The honey bee in our society
16.40 Final debate and recommendations
Monday 24th November 2003 (optional)
Discovering Belgium
Optional tour: Bruges or Brussels.

Registration Fees
Before 31" August: 30 Euros (20 Euros for one day)
After 1St September: 40 Euros (25 Euros for one day)
After the 30th October: we cannot guarantee the provision of earphones for the translation.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CALL CART asbl - Place Croix du Sud 4 B - 1348 LOUVAIN-La-NEUVE (Belgium) Tel: +32 10 47 34 16 FAX: +32 10 47 34 94 E-mail: info@cari.be http://www.cari.be

22-25 February 2004 - Apimondia Symposium on Tropical Beekeeping: Research and Development for Pollination and Conservation. Heredia Costa Rica More detail is available from: Isanchez@una.ac.cr

23-27 February 2004 - 7th Asian Apicultural Association Conference Los Banos College, Lagunas, Philippines. More information from: cleofas.cervancia@up.edu.ph

24th April 2004 BBKA Spring Convention and Exhibition

6-10 September 2004 - 8th IBRA Conference on tropical Bees: management and diversity. Ribeiro Preto, Brazil.

16th April 2005 BBKA Spring Convention and Exhibition

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