The Mystery of the Missing Spiracle (Pair) by Staci Siler

Tags

honey bee anatomy, Robert Evans Snodgrass, spiracles

The Mystery of the Missing Spiracle (Pair)
by Staci Siler

It read like the gravest of murder mysteries.  There was a spiracle missing on the side of my honey bee.  The book I read said it was supposed to be there but it was conspicuously absent.  What was wrong??  Was I looking at a serious mutation in my bee?  Was it contagious?  What was going on!!!!!  Where was that spiracle?

It would be nice if the answer were easy…  Or rather, I should say the answer is easy…. but complicated.

Read one book and there are nine spiracles on each side of a honey bee.  Read another and there are ten.  Read a third book and there are two spiracles on the thorax and a fourth will claim three…  So who is right??? Who is wrong???  What is going on and where is that spiracle???!!!???

To get to the answer to the question of two or three spiracles on the thorax, we have to learn a little about honey bee biology.  A spiracle is, basically, a hole in the side of the honey bee through which the bee breathes.  When the bee is a young larvae, there are ten spiracles along the side of it’s body — two on the thoracic region and eight on the abdomen.   As the honey bee grows, a ‘waist’ develops which separates the thorax from the abdomen but it starts right below the first segment of the abdomen.  As such, anatomical pictures of the adult honey bee look like this:

On this picture, you can see that the Roman numerals, which number the segments of the abdomen, start at I on the thorax, where the third spiracle is at.  As such, it would be technically correct to say there are two spiracles on the thorax but….  it would also be accurate to claim three spiracles to the ‘thoracic area’ or claim three by acknowledging the way the first abdominal segment is positioned on the thorax.That did very little to solve the initial question though as we are still left with a missing spiracle.  So… if the larvae started out with ten spiracles, where did it go?

Here is a picture of the young larvae, with all ten spiracles marked as dots along the centerline of the larvae.

Note that the tenth spiracle is located on the Roman Numeral, VIII, the eighth segment of the larval abdomen.  But if we look back at the adult honey bee we saw above, there is no eighth segment… is there???Actually, there is.  When the honey bee goes through metamorphosis, the eighth segment which contains the tenth spiracle ends up tucking up inside the seventh segment.  It is not visible but it still exists.  That said, is the tenth spiracle, though functional as a larvae, still functional or even connected to the breathing sacs in the adult honey bee.  See below image:

Note: only spiracles one through nine are listed.

The latest addition of the Hive and the Honey Bee lists the tenth spiracle as located in the spiracular plate associated with the base of the sting and, given it states there is a way for the spiracle to stop the escape of air, it lends credibility to the thought that the tenth spiracle, though often forgotten, is functional.  There is no notation for it in the above picture but other texts list it as having the second largest opening of the ten spiracles which would imply it is anything but vestigial.

So… we have found the missing spiracle.  You won’t see it if you put a magnifying glass on the bee’s abdomen but the tenth spiracle does exist, it is just not readily visible unless you are willing to get up close to the honey bee’s sting — an area beekeepers generally try to avoid.

Which is the more accurate answer?  Two or three, nine or ten??

I guess, as long as you take into account every reason for the differences (nine visible, ten functional — three on the thorax if acknowledging the transfer of the abdominal segment, two on the actual thorax) you could say any one of those variations and be correct… Technically…..

Ref: R.E. Snodgrass, Honey Bee Anatomy

Staci Siler is a Master Beekeeper living in South Carolina. She teaches all levels of beekeeping classes and frequently speaks at beekeeping associations across the state. She is the current Secretary of Mid-State Beekeepers located in the Midlands of South Carolina.

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Ginger Honey Pear Butter by Fillmore Container

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ginger, honey, honey recipe, pears, raw honey, recipe

Ginger Honey Pear Butter

September is National Honey Month and it seemed fitting for us to celebrate. Not only because we have a pretty sweet line of honey jars, but also because we’ve been enjoying honey sweetened preserves and all the benefits of swapping honey for sugar in our jams, fruit butters and other preserves.

If you haven’t tried using honey in place of sugar in your preserves, this post about honey sweetened preserves offers some guidance on how to do that safely. We’ve also learned a lot about the addition of honey, and tried many trusted recipes from the books Naturally Sweet Food in Jars, and Preserving with Pomona’s Pectin.

GINGER HONEY PEAR BUTTER

This recipe is adapted from Marisa McClellan’s recipe for Gingery Fig Butter in her book Naturally Sweet Food in Jars.

Yield: 5 (half-pint/250 ml) jars

3 pounds/1.4 kg pears, chopped

1 cup/340 g honey

1/4 cup/60 ml bottled lemon juice

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

Prepare jars, lids and a boiling water bath canner and 5 half-pint/250 ml jars.

Note: You don’t need to peel these pears. The natural pectin in the skins helps thickening. And adds flavor and nutrition. When you puree the pears (with the skins), you’ll find the skins just disappear into the butter.

Combine the pears, honey, lemon juice, and ginger in a low, wide, non-reactive pot. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Once the contents of the pot begin to bubble and roll, reduce the heat to medium-low. Using an immersion blender, puree the warm pears until smooth. Cook, stirring regularly until the pear puree is thick. You know it’s done because it begins to thickly coat the sides of the pan and offers more resistance when you stir. During cooking, the pear butter may have clumped up a bit. If this is the case, use your immersion blender to puree is smooth again.

Remove the pot from the heat and funnel the finished butter into the prepared jars, leaving 1/2 inch/12 mm of headspace. Wipe the rims, apply the lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes.

Ref.:

https://www.fillmorecontainer.com/blog/2018/09/20/ginger-honey-pear-butter/

Can Robobees Solve the Pollination Crisis? by The Xerces Society

Tags

honey bees, native pollinators, pollination, robobees

Earlier this year, Walmart filed a patent application for drones that are designed to pollinate crops by carrying pollen from one plant to another, detecting flower locations with sensors and cameras. More recently, there has been a surge in news articles analyzing the concept of “robobees,” which is also being researched in labs around the world, from Harvard to Russia’s Tomsk Polytechnic University. Although several organizations are exploring this concept as a way to address the alarming decline in honey-bee populations, it seems highly unlikely that robotic pollinators could actually provide a solution.

First, in crop plants alone there are myriad varieties of flower shapes, sizes, and arrangements. For a sense of this diversity, just think of squash flowers, sunflowers, apple blossoms, and tomato flowers. Bees have coevolved with plants to collect and transport pollen efficiently. How many different types of drones would one farmer need? We are a very long way from having technology that will accomplish the task that bees already perform.

And the problem is more complex than just crops. At least 85 percent of all terrestrial plant species either require or strongly benefit from some form of animal pollination, and the idea of robotic pollinators ignores the many wild plants in meadows, prairies, hedgerows, and forests. Focusing solely on crop pollination and failing to take the pollination of native plants into account may well lead to a deterioration in the plant communities that make up the very fabric of our environment.

Read the full article here: Can Robobees Solve the Pollination Crisis? — The Xerces Society

Queen Bee Chemistry by Sciences In the Mural Of Life

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honey bee queen, pheromones, queen bee chemistry, queens

It is so easy to jump to conclusions when observing and studying honeybees. To the uninitiated, the female workers seem to be the key to the hive. After all, they do so much. They start off early in their lives cleaning the nest. A few days later they are feeding larvae, then secreting wax to build the honeycomb. At about the age of 20 days, they act as guards to the entrance of the nest, and when their glands degenerate, they’re off collecting pollen and nectar for the rest of their lives. After a successful trip, they perform elaborate symbolic dances, revealing both the angular and scalar components of their displacement from flowers to hive. In contrast, the males and the queen bee don’t do any of the above.

But the female workers, as industrious as they may be, do not reproduce and do not exert the strongest influence in the hive. The failure of a single and other type of individual is consistently listed as a cause of honeybee colony mortality.  That individual is the queen bee. She is born in a cell built larger than the others to accommodate her bigger size. But what makes her develop into a queen? After observing that the queen bee larva and adult queen is only fed a so-called royal jelly, a white mixture of protein and sugar secreted from the heads of worker bees, it was long assumed that the mixture held the secret. But a few years ago it was revealed that the key was not necessarily contained in the royal jelly but in what the queen bee was not fed: pollen and nectar. The latter food- source for other larvae contains flavonoids, some of which include inhibitors. Investigators reared larvae in the lab on a royal jelly diet adulterated with para coumaric acid, and by the time they developed into adults, ovary development had been stunted.

Read the full article here: Queen Bee Chemistry — Sciences In the Mural Of Life

Politics of the Hive – The Bee Blog by Rita Komendant

Tags

drone bees, honey bee behavior, politics of the hive

This is a Drone. He has very large eyes that I surmise cover a 270° radius  (just a guess, I’ll look it up) so he can see the Queen for the mating flight. All those drones taking up space in the hive and eating up all the goodies, the bee bread and honey stores. Bee bread is a combo of honey and pollen. Can you taste the polleny-breadiness? I have now read the colony allows them to hang out to ‘keep the brood warm’ but the entomologists don’t all agree on this.  They are larger than everyone else, kind of ‘chunky’.

‘First Lessons in Beekeeping’ published in 1918 by  Charles Dadant arrived recently from Amazon’s trove of ‘lost books’. This book is considered one of the ‘bibles’ of beekeeping.  We got it right back then and bees were and still are and always will be it seems, the most studied creature on the planet. The book begins immediately with the reproduction equipment (and that stinger) of this fascinating society of insects. Dadant could draw!(next time I’ll show you the etching-like diagrams)

Read the full article here: Politics of the Hive — The Bee Blog by Rita Komendant

Grandpa’s Bees by TheHem4Life

Tags

beekeeping history, gum hives, history, Langstroth hives

Actual gum hive

Langstroth hive

The old-timers call them bee gums.  Bees commonly took up residence in an old gum tree.  These natural hollows could be used for keeping bee colonies.  L.L. Langstroth patented a new man-made structure for bees in 1852 with a careful mind to maintaining “bee space”.  This design, with minor modifications, remains the standard for modern beekeeping in the United States.  Some new designs are being developed.  But Grandpa had his white painted langstroths behind the house and above the garden for his bees.  He still called them bee gums.

I grew up in Colorado, so childhood visits to my grandparents were rare.  But I still remember sitting on the porch watching a massive swarm settling into the nearby tree while Grandpa fretted over how to get them back into a bee gum.  Hard to get honey from escapees.

Fresh honey truly is magical.  Nothing like what comes in the stores.  Even honey from a chemical free beekeeper is not the same – it has sat around a bit.  Grandpa would suit up and grab his smoker and return with frames and frames of the stuff.  My sister and I would chew up the comb extracting the honey directly onto our tongues.  Granny and Grandpa used their great big aluminum pans to drip out honey while cutting the comb.  Chunks of comb would go into waiting mason jars, the remaining honey poured over, and the jars sealed.  The honey went to family, friends, the bank house, and the farmer’s market.  There always seemed to be plenty though Grandpa kept four colonies at the most.

Read the full article here: grandpa’s bees — TheHem4Life

Bee Keeping & Legitimately Fun Facts About Bees! by LEO

Tags

beekeeping fun facts, honey bees, keeping bees

Ever since kindergarten, I have been beekeeping with my mother, but we aren’t the first in our family. Our beekeeping tradition goes back four generations to my great-grandmother Charlotte Ames, but I am the first male beekeeper in my family. My sister, on the other hand, does not want to involve herself with bugs in any way. She will go days without using her bathroom if there is a ladybug somewhere inside.

I  have loved bugs all my life. When I was three or four years old, I would find stinkbugs, because my old house had an abundance of them, and stuff them in my matchbox cars and drive them around town. Though I couldn’t get my hands on bees to put them in cars, I still loved them anyway.

Read full article here: Bee Keeping & Legitimately Fun Facts About Bees! — LEO

Beek Reads: Nobody Wants to be the Queen by Q Gardens

Tags

honey bee behavior, honey bee queen, honey bee roles, political

“What role would you want in the hive?” we asked, the eight of us sitting in the circle of benches surrounded by Q Gardens’ newly green herbs and late spring blooms. The answers differed, but on one thing, we agreed: No one wants to be the queen.

The life of a drone sounds idyllic, if short-lived. Lay about the hive. Eat. Wait for a sunny day to fly out to the drone congregation area—how exactly the drones know the congregation’s location is a mystery—and find a young virgin queen to explosively impregnate. And die, gracelessly but with purpose.

The worker bee’s life isn’t so bad either. She has a number of roles, from nurse to scout, so it’s never boring, and workers have the highest “autonomy,” collectively making the hive’s “decisions.” A worker’s life is always busy, always productive.

Read the full article here: Beek Reads: Nobody Wants to be the Queen — Q Gardens

Pork Tacos with Honey Mango Relish by From Prosecco to Peaches

Tags

honey, mango, recipe, relish, taco, taco recipe

I had been in the mood for tacos for a few days but could not decide what kind I wanted to make. Ground beef? Steak? Chicken? A trip to the butcher decided for me. We popped into the butcher and waiting for me was this pork shoulder (aka boston butt). Once I laid my eyes on it my taco destiny was decided.

Fruit salsas/relish don’t usually appeal to me. I like my savory dishes savory and my sweet dishes sweet, rarely do I enjoy combining the two (except for the classic salt+chocolate]. However, I had a few honey mangos hanging out on the counter, and figured I would give this whole fruit salsa thing a go. Speaking of honey mangos, where have you been all of my life? I have never seen them before this year and suddenly they are in every supermarket. I’m glad for it, they are way easier to prepare than the mangos I am used to eating.

Anyway, the next time you find yourself wanting some tacos, or need to feed a crowd, definitely give these a try. If you are a savory fruit skeptic, give the relish a go, it definitely made me a convert.

Get the recipe here: Pork Tacos with Honey Mango Relish — From Prosecco to Peaches

The Background Hum – Drones by Why Do Bees

Tags

biology, drones, honey bee biology

They’re freeloaders yet vital to the colony’s success. Most of the time they’re laid back bordering on lazy, yet they give it all to their mission when pheromones beckon, dying in the process. They’re allowed to play in the hive all season then bullied out in the fall. It’s all about colony survival. In a healthy hive, drones are the background hum, the harmony behind the melody, a small but important part of the symphony.

Read the full article at: The Background Hum — Why Do Bees

Garden Plan For Pollinators by Keeping Backyard Bees

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gardening for bees, plants for pollinators, pollinator gardening, pollinator gardens

Many pollinator species have suffered serious declines in recent years. Unfortunately, most of our landscapes offer little in the way of appropriate habitat, forage, and housing. Even the most beautiful gardens are not always healthy ecosystems. Design choices, plant selections, and maintenance practices can make a huge difference in creating your own healthy ecosystem, filled with life. As a garden designer, I use this landscape plan for many gardens to attract the greatest varieties of pollinators.

Read full article with lots of pictures and plans here: Garden Plan For Pollinators — Keeping Backyard Bees

The Zen of Beekeeping by Wildflower Meadows

Tags

first time in hive, new beekeepers, Zen of Beekeeping

For a beginning beekeeper, opening a hive for the first few times can be somewhat overwhelming – and downright scary!  There are all those bees in there.  They have stingers.  What if they get angry???  Then there is all of the unfamiliar gear: a veil or suit, big gloves, and a new hive tool.  It can all be a bit overwhelming and cause a beginning beekeeper to feel quite anxious.

This nervousness almost certainly makes matters worse.  While it is hard to say for certain whether bees can intrinsically sense this unease, they most certainly do sense unsteady and jerky movements.  Bees do not like these kinds of rapid or rushed actions.  They especially do not like any kind of rough treatment.  For an experienced beekeeper, swatting at bees, darting about, dropping things, and banging things are all completely out of the question.

Beekeepers need to be relaxed and calm around their bees.  If you are nervous as a beginner, you need do your best to pretend that you are calm.  (“Fake it until you make it!”).  Bees are sensitive creatures.  If you move carefully and calmly, treating them with peace and respect, they will return the favor.  One of the joys of keeping bees is the opportunity to get in touch with and to give respect to the magnificent sense of peace and purpose that is in the heart of every beehive.

Read full article at: The Zen of Beekeeping — Wildflower Meadows

Bees and Water by Braman’s Wanderings

Tags

honey bees, providing water, water

We often see pictures of bees collecting nectar from flowers and blossoms, but they also need to collect water. The bees use water to cool their hives, help feed their young and also to keep honey at the right hydration level.

Read full article with more photos at:  Bees and Water — Braman’s Wanderings

A Relaxing Stroll in the Bee Yard by sassafrasbeefarm

Tags

beekeeping

Thor’s Fight with the Giants by Mårten Eskil Winge, 1872

Hehehe, Just came in from doing a walk through the bee yard. One hive is off to itself having been established under a tree where a swarm had been captured this past spring. The hive grew to such size that moving it became problematic so it was just left on its own. The problem is the bottom board on this hive is a makeshift piece of thin lauan plywood screwed to spacers and a 10 frame deep. I had built it to use for “on the road” swarm captures but it had been utilized in a pinch and had remained.

I have known I needed to move the whole thing over to a regular bottom board and 10 frame  – some day. Yeah, it never happened. But today, with the rain and some of crappy weather behind us, I decide I’m ready to do something about it. hehehe.

Now the human mind is a curious thing and I know better than to dismantle this still large hive of four boxes on a rainy day to change out the bottom board. So the mind’s acceptable substitution, or less absurd solution, is to replace the idea of changing the bottom board with the more reasonable task of just sliding a reducer into place. The fact that it is raining outside doesn’t seem to impact this well thought out, reasonable compromise, to the problem.

Effort 1: reducer too long; about 5 bees decide they don’t want the reducer and run me off.

Effort 2: Now equipped with a bee suit and a hive tool I return and attempt to place reducer on front of hive; reducer becomes stuck sideways and won’t slide into place even using hive tool as wedge; about 20 bees decide they would rather not have a reducer and run me away.

Effort 3: I return with suit, gloves, hive tool, and hammer; I am greeted by 30 or more bees upon approach; I place reducer and start tapping it into place with hammer; within seconds about 50 – 75 bees come out and demand I leave; I set a new world’s speed record successfully installing the reducer; then, assuming this is a biathlon, I set another world land speed record running back to the house. There I discover I have transported at least a dozen hard core bees attached to my jeans, suit, and veil; I spend the next 10 minutes removing bees and resolve to just leave that hive to its own defenses – it seems they really didn’t need a reducer after all.

I wonder where I dropped that hammer.

 

Dr Warwick Kerr, the “Man Who Created Killer Bees”, has died by Bad Beekeeping Blog

Tags

AFB, africanized honey bees, Dr. Warwick Kerr, famous beekeepers

It is with regret that we report that the humanitarian, geneticist, and scientist, Professor Warwick Kerr, passed away this morning, September 15, 2018. He was six days past his 96th birthday.  Dr Kerr, a Brazilian bee scientist, had one of the most maligned lives of any research scientist. He will be remembered by some as the man who gave us ‘Killer Bees’ – the African-European bee known for its (sometimes) aggressive behaviour. The Africanized Honey Bee, a hybrid which Dr Kerr was largely responsible for creating, helped turn his impoverished homeland of Brazil from a backwater of agriculture and honey production into one of the most prolific honey and agriculture countries in the world.

Read full article at: Dr Warwick Kerr, the “Man Who Created Killer Bees”, has died — Bad Beekeeping Blog

Dulcis Coccora Recipe by Savor the Southwest

Tags

art, dates, fruit recipe, honey, honey recipe

A bit of history to sweeten an excellent historical recipe. Have a visit and read the full recipe. – sassafrasbeefarm

Monica King here to kick off National Honey Month since I’m a beekeeper. This awareness month was initiated by the National Honey Board in 1989 to promote American beekeepers and honey.

One pharoah, Cleopatra, used honey in her beauty regime. One of Cleopatra’s secrets, and her most famous, was her ritual bathing in milk and honey. Both of these ingredients naturally soften the skin, exfoliate, and leave a fresh, sweet scent. You can do this yourself by adding two cups milk and half cup honey to your bath water.

Personally, it is Cleopatra’s sweet tooth that I can relate to. Cleopatra’s favorite treat was a sweet honey ball called “Dulcis Coccora” also known as “Tiger Nut Sweets.” A recipe was reported to have been found on a broken piece of Egyptian pottery dating from 1600 BCE.

“Dulcis Coccora”
1 pound pitted dates
water
2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon fresh ground cardamon
4 tablespoons chopped walnuts
honey – to coat
ground almonds and/or pomegranate seeds

Read full recipe here: Bees: Tears of the Sun God Re — Savor the Southwest:

Bees adjust to seasons with nutrients in flowers and ‘dirty water’ by Save The Bees Concert

Tags

feeding bees, honey bee nutrition, minerals, vitamins

More and more it’s pointing to nutrition to help us save our bees.
~ sassafrasbeefarm

Researchers have discovered that honey bees alter their diet of nutrients according to the season. A spike in calcium consumption in the fall, and high intake of potassium, help prepare the bees for colder months when they likely need those minerals to generate warmth. A careful inventory of the bees’ nutrient intake revealed shifting sources and how limitations in nutrient availability from these sources can have implications for the health of both managed and wild colonies.

Read full article here: Bees adjust to seasons with nutrients in flowers and ‘dirty water’ — Save The Bees Concert

Why Smoking Soothes the Stressed-Out Bee Hive by Meredith Swett Walker

Tags

art, bee smoker, beekeeping equipment, defensive behavior, honey bee behavior

Smoke has long been the beekeeper’s secret weapon to avoid getting stung. Ancient Egyptian art dating back over 2,500 years ago depicts beekeepers blowing smoke into hives. But despite the age of this practice and human’s enduring fascination with honey bees, we still haven’t figured out exactly why smoke soothes bees.

Meredith Swett Walker

In research published in August in the Journal of Insect Science, Stephanie Gage, Ph.D., with colleagues at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Carl Hayden Bee Research Center and at BetaTec Hop Products, presents a scientific evaluation of smoke on the honey bee’s defensive behavior. The researchers focused on the “sting extension response” and evaluated the effects of two different types of smoke: burlap, which is commonly used by beekeepers, and spent hop pellets—a recycled material made from hop flowers after they have been used to make beer.

Because a honey bee (Apis mellifera) hive contains valuable treasure—sweet honey and protein packed larvae—bees must mount a coordinated defense to protect the hive from the many predators that would love to plunder it. A small number of worker bees serve as “guard bees” that patrol the entrance to the hive and watch for intruders. If a threat is detected, the guard will raise her abdomen and extend her stinger into the air. This behavior is called the sting extension response, and it releases an alarm pheromone, or a chemical signal, to the rest of the colony, mobilizing other workers to prepare to attack an intruder. If the intruder provokes the bees further, stinging commences.

Read the full article here on Entomology Today Why Smoking Soothes the Stressed-Out Bee Hive — Entomology Today

High Altitude Honey Bee by 67steffen

Tags

bee photos, photography

The honey bee in this shot, taken yesterday, is about 14 feet off the ground in the middle of ivy growing on a pergola.  Its wings are beating at 11,000 times per minute along with around 500 other bees in this ivy. The buzzing is very loud. I’m standing on a step stool with a 50mm SLR–bees are whizzing by me. This is nuts. But I take the photo regardless.  

Folllow more daily photos from the lens of: 67steffen

Gray Squirrels and Pollen Feeders

Tags

beekeeping, humor

(Above) Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) in pollen feeder. This is a picture of last year’s pollen feeder hanging outside my wood shop. Only it might as well have been called a squirrel feeder. They have to eat too and pollen substitute is high in protein!

(Below) And here are a few pictures of this year’s effort. No squirrels this year after placing the feeders on PVC pipe and greasing the pipe. A little plastic protrudes over the opening to protect the pollen from any rain.

 

Breakfast fruit bowl with honey by Sunsets Sunrise

Tags

breakfast recipe, honey, honey and fruit, recipe

Hi everyone! I thought I would post food for today. Back on the grind of eating healthier. Breakfast is known as the most important meal. This is breakfast. Strawberries, blueberries, mango, kiwi over yogurt and oats on the bottom drizzled with raw honey. My way of eating healthier. Although at times I go off course. […]

Read full blog post here: Breakfast fruit bowl. — Sunsets Sunrise

Eastern Apicultural Society 2018 – How Fortunate I Am by sassafrasbeefarm

Tags

beekeeper testing, EAS, Eastern Apicultural Society, master beekeeper program

Recently I have taken some time off from blogging. In fact about three weeks now. Except for the occasional scheduled posts of famous beekeepers, I have taken a bit of time for a diversion – an experience that I want to share with you here.

EAS 2017, Delaware

Last year I attended the Eastern Apicultural Society’s conference in Newark, Delaware. To say the least, I was taken by the scope and quality of the conference. At every turn I was impressed with the event. The lectures were outstanding, the speakers personable and approachable, and the venue perfect in many ways. I was literally up at 6:30am every morning, having breakfast with many of today’s notable beekeepers by 7:00am, and attending lectures and events until 8:30pm. But although I was trying my best to eke out every morsel of beekeeping goodness, I found it impossible to do it all. There was the microscopy track which was running concurrent with multiple lecture sessions, the honey show marched on in the background, the bee yard events, and the local excursions passing me by. I vowed to return this year to accomplish more.

EAS 2018 Hampton VA

This year, in Hampton, Virginia, I would take a bigger bite and try my hand with one of the other tracks taking place at the conference. But before I spill the beans, let me tell you a bit of my history. You see, I’m a beginner at this avocation called beekeeping. A mere seven years although my wife and children will attest I have been diligent in my studies. During those seven years I have purposefully tried to explore as many niches in beekeeping as possible. Some things, like honey bee removals from structures, were one and done events. I’ve entered honey shows  and won blue ribbons and while somewhat rewarding I found it wasn’t my calling. I’ve kept some outyards on farms and gardens for the sole purpose of learning how to anticipate needs and scheduled visits. A couple of magazine articles were satisfying and added some financial assistance as I grew my apiary and purchased queen rearing equipment. Two years as the local association’s Secretary probably grew my knowledge base the most as I took part in responding to swarm calls, emails from beginning beekeepers, cold calling problem bee colonies, teaching classes, and surrounding myself with more knowledgeable beekeepers.

Along the path described above I checked off the boxes towards becoming a master beekeeper. And I found myself well on my way by the time I was at EAS 2017. But last year, at EAS, I saw what I wanted more than the microscopy classes or a honey show. I wanted the challenge of the EAS master beekeeping exam. Four tests – written, verbal, lab, and field. You get a pin and a certificate if you pass all four. The carrot on the stick for me was simply attempting and completing the challenge. I wanted to somehow put together my seven years of exploring and turn it into confirmation that I was well-rounded in the knowledge and skills of beekeeping. Not perfect, as my knowledge is far from complete; just a well rounded generalist.

So, this year I would give up many of the lectures and events to subject myself to mental exhaustion. Preparation started three years prior but in earnest after last year’s EAS conference. As this year’s testing approached I upped my study time and pressed my long since unpracticed study skills. Isn’t there some sort of saying about the difficulties in teaching old dogs? Well, I’m an old dog and things don’t stick as readily as they used to. Put another way, my mental hard drive has been filled for some time now with the events of life.

Just before walking into the written exam.

The EAS Master Beekeeping testing started with a meet and greet on Monday afternoon. There were about twenty-seven beekeepers there, some younger and some older, who would be taking some or all of the tests. Some were returning from a previous unsuccessful attempt. There you learn that there is no shame in re-attempting the test – in fact it’s the norm. The remainder of the room was filled with current EAS Master Beekeepers both sitting and lining the walls. The  beekeepers testing were invited to tell their stories about what brought them there. The master beekeepers shared their stories as well and encouraged us to try our best, and to not be discouraged no matter the outcome. At some point the message comes through that this testing is not solely about spilling forth what we have learned but is also about the ability to persevere, to stand and deliver to our best ability, and to be open to learning during the testing. The meet and greet works to dispel the idea that one has to pass to be successful. What one should also be doing is learning from what is before them. Oh, I still wanted to pass the exams, but now I also had the goal to let this opportunity mentor me which took some of the pressure off.

The next two days and nights were filled with last-minute, self-imposed test preparation and rehearsing my one known oral test question (one verbal exam test question of four is known to the testee). At some point during this crunch time in the testing process it begins to become apparent that I am learning more about beekeeping and about myself.

The written test was difficult. But too often I simply looked at the obvious yet still called it wrong. True/false, multiple choice, short answer all reasonable if only my brain would tell me whether it was White, Wilson, Watson, or Woodley. The essay questions were a delight. Time to sit down, apply structured writing, and explain what I know without rushing an answer. I walked out giving myself even odds.

The oral exam was my weakest exam performance. I had spent too much time preparing for the known question and none preparing for the unknown questions. Well, how exactly does one prepare for the unknown? Yeah, there are ways. Any response can be structured just as any good essay can be outlined. Or frame your reply as a story-teller or perhaps present your monologue along a timeline. Start rehearsing at the farmer’s market and state fair booth. I knew this and have spoken with hundreds at markets and fairs so why did I stumble and miss the mark? The testers were kind but I know I fell short.

Dr. Caron overlooking the lab exam

Day two, on to the lab/practical testing. I had prepared for this by looking at pictures. I can read but thought a last-minute night of looking at pictures would be more beneficial and less stressful. Being a catalog nerd, I had the beekeeping merchandise down cold already – no need to study there. (Still I got stumped on one item that was used in candle making.) Onward… I had reviewed the diseases, especially the photos in the MAAREC book, Honey Bees and Their Maladies which proved beneficial. The microscopes proved to be easy enough except for my over thinking the specimens. Simma’ down now and relax. Afterwards, I gave myself less than stellar but better than even odds.

The last exam is the field test. Veils required; gloves shunned. No worries right? Let me say that although I am a beekeeper I do not enjoy being stung. But the thinking is a master beekeeper works his bees in a manner that minimizes stings. Hello? Does anyone here realize that it’s August? Dearth most likely? At home, 400 miles to the south, we are well into nectar dearth and the bees are cranky. Yeah, I do go gloveless sometimes, but usually I tend to rush things and know this about myself so I use white nitrile gloves – or leather if the bees are especially defensive. None for today though. So I wait for my time to go forth into the hive with an EAS Master Beekeeper. Then I see Landi Simone walk into to the bee yard and she and Paul are assigned to me.

Now, I really like Landi’s presentations. I’ve listened to her lecture titled, ‘Reading the Frames’ multiple times. I heard her lecture at EAS 2017 as well. In my mind she wrote the book on reading the frames. But now it’s time for her to role play the part of a newbee beekeeper and I’m to play the role of the experienced beekeeper. I’m going to read the frames to Landi Simone. Like they say at Disney, “On Stage!”

We stand at the hive and I do my external assessment. Paul stands in front of the hive. Yeah, he’s testing to see what I’ll say. I tell him to move out of the path of the bees. He wants to know why. I mutter something about UPS planes on landing approach to an airport runway. Landi offers a comment to my comment which depending in whether she is in character or out of character could be good or not so good. We proceed with the exam and I open the hive after applying just the right amount of smoke. Casually I say, “In South Carolina we always inspect the underside of the inner cover to assess the presence of small hive beetles and to smash them.” I glance down and instead of SHB the queen is running across the inner cover. Really? Now, this has happened to me only twice before in seven years but there she is in all her glory. I manage to get her to run down between the frames while silently praising Priestess Melissae. I mutter again, this time something about extra credit for finding the queen on the inner cover.

We proceed in dismantling the hive and all the while Paul is simulating the chattering of an excited first timer in the hives. I am trying to be patient but he’s eating up valuable hive time and I’m thinking his every question needs a complete answer or I’ll lose credit. At some point I’m explaining varroa mites and a different voice from somewhere booms out, “Tell me what a varroa mite IS?” Am I hallucinating or is someone calling out from the building’s roof? I turn to my right and yet another master beekeeper in an orange suit has appeared out of nowhere. I’m now completely derailed from my monolog and before I can shift gears and gather my thoughts he says, “What classification?” I tell him it’s not an insect so I would venture it’s an arthropod but from there I don’t know the taxonomy. He answers his own question, “It’s a parasite!” I take up his lead and start in with Apis cerana adapting to varroa which has not happened with Apis mellifera. Everyone seems somewhat pleased and the orange suit disappears.

Down, down, down we go into the bottom hive body, well past my typical time in a hive, and I still don’t have a definitive diagnosis for this troubled hive. Then a brief interruption from Paul who, continuing the role of the new beekeeper, is now complaining of a bee sting to his arm, I scrape out the stinger with my hive tool (he really does have a sting) and minimize the event although he wants more. Another question and I mutter something about too many questions – the bees are getting restless and have issued their warning and Landi is quick to ask, “Why are they making that noise?” I tell her, “They are telling us, it’s time to leave,” as I start to close up.  After closing, I finally repeat some of what I have been saying all along: spotty capped brood pattern, too few capped cells for the amount of open brood, queen has filled open cells with brood (appear well fed and healthy) as the spotty capped brood emerges which presents as mixed larval ages on the frame. Oh yeah, and backfilling. All of which is accurate but I’m only talking symptoms and have not given a diagnosis nor a prescription. Finally, I offer up a closing statement: “Possible mites causing the spotty brood due to hygienic behavior but I can not rule out inbred queen. Check the mite count immediately and treat if indicated. Re-inspect in two weeks to see if the copious open brood pattern turns into a good capped brood pattern in which case the colony has re-queened already. If not then re-queen. And cut back on the feeding before they swarm.” As we walk away I have no idea if I have satisfied their questions or correctly read the hive. I didn’t do myself any favors getting cranky towards the end. Crap shoot on this one.

As I’m walking back to my car to put everything away I realize I’m exhausted. But I have a good feeling that it’s done – all done. I survived the exams. Not that I thought there would be torture if I didn’t do well. I was simply happy to have put myself out there and given it a try.

I had to return home the next day to fulfill a family obligation. I wouldn’t be at EAS to see those in my testing class who passed receive their pins and certificates at the Friday night awards ceremony. I wish I could have. A connection is established between the test takers even though most of us had only just met two days prior – stories between us about how our families thought we were a bit off our rockers for constantly reading about bees – actually a lot about that. Also possible divorces if the books didn’t get put away, wanting to prove to the spouse we could pass, and worry that we’d have the books out for another year.

I explored my strengths and weaknesses on the drive home. I would be happy with passing two of the four exams. That would leave only two for next year. I felt like I did poorly on the orals although they were giving me praise on the way out the door. Nice guys but I knew better. By the time I passed through the middle of North Carolina I had developed a better presentation. Next year I’d make every oral presentation a story. “Let me tell you the story of almond pollination and the beekeepers that ‘got er’ done.” Yeah, that’s the model I’ll use next year.

And what was I thinking on the field exam? I jumped out of character several times. And worse of all I implied they were asking too many questions. Definitely not a good mentor tactic. I’d get dinged on that one. In fact, I thought, that’s probably an automatic fail. Next year I’ll start with coaching my mentees on how we have limited time and if they have non inspection related questions, or wanted to ask about their grandmother’s allergic reaction, we need to do that before or after the hive inspection. And next year, afterwards I’ll hold a debriefing and tell them they need to do their homework before our next session. No more sandbagging on the homework and asking questions already covered in their beginning beekeeper class. I’d suggest they review their book before we start our next hive inspection. By the time I arrived in the Midlands of South Carolina I had my game plan in order for next year.

But most importantly by the time I arrived home I realized what I had gained from the experience. I learned what a better beekeeper would have done and said, both in the oral and field exams. The tests were a time for me to both deliver my knowledge and to take some knowledge away. “Trust in the system,” I remembered one master beekeeper saying during the meet and greet session. He was right. I was satisfied with what the system taught me and recognizing my blunders. I could fix those next year.

Friday morning my phone rings and it’s my friend and mentor Dave. He’s still at EAS and the test results packets have been given out. He wants to know if I want him to pick up mine. I tell him, “sure” and after a brief verbal consent to a lady at the front desk, he opens up the packet and begins to read the results to me. When he comes to the last one his voice lights up, “Larry, you’re a master beekeeper!” Now I know Dave and he’s not a prankster, but we all make mistakes so I ask him to be sure. He re-reads the scores and says it again.

                        Dave and me at EAS 2018, Hampton, VA

In retrospect, I ask myself if I indeed passed. I’m sure I did not perform at my best. As with many things, some days things just flow, and on other days Murphy’s Law is in full effect. But I came through it displaying the ability to persevere, to stand and deliver to the best of my ability, and to be open to learning during the testing. That’s what they wanted even if I didn’t hit the high notes. So, in the end, I’m not really sure how they knew I learned as well as ‘spilled forth,’ but I have to trust the system.

How fortunate I am. My results came as I was driving my son to school – his first year in a dorm room. How fortunate I was to have him see how study results in a positive outcome. And how fortunate I am to have a wife that supported my effort despite months of my preoccupation with bee books scattered about the house from the dining room to the nightstand. And how fortunate I am to have been tested by Dr. Delaney and Dr. Caron. Some years from now when I’m old and gray someone might ask me about the testing and I’ll be able to say I took the test under these distinguished entomologists. And how fortunate I am to have been able to read the frames to Landi Simone even if I didn’t do it as efficiently or accurately as she. And how fortunate I am to have (with)stood and delivered on the oral exams to three great guys, Larry, Jim, and Bill, cheering me on through a tough half hour. I am indeed a fortunate beekeeper.

 

 

 

Beekeepers get ready for Spring in the Fall

Tags

beekeeping, management

Get ready for Spring!

Lots of articles speak to the beekeeping year beginning in August or early Fall. Yikes, that’s now!

If you harvested in June then you probably fed your bees through the dearth. If you waited until now to harvest you probably got less honey but you saved the costs associated with feeding. Either way, now is the time to build the best bees you possibly can for the winter.

I know it’s still hot but get back in there on the next reasonably nice day and assess them. You don’t really have to take every frame out and make them upset but get an idea of what they have. Look for capped and uncapped brood, pollen, and honey stores. And start picking up the back of that hive and compare it to what you see inside so you learn what’s heavy and what’s not.

We’re on the cusp of the Fall flow and soon your hive will start to stink from goldenrod pollen. That smell should bring a smile to your face as they are making preparations for winter and raising fat winter bees. Some of you may have more honey than you need, others will see some empty comb. Read your hive and, like an artist, choose your tools to create the ideal hive for overwintering.

Most beekeepers assess and treat for Varroa after they pull honey whether that was a couple months ago or now. You want to do everything possible to increase the health of your bees now so they, in turn, raise strong winter bees over the next two generations. Sickly bees build sickly bees; strong bees build Arnold Schwartenegger bees. You want Arnold on your side when the temperatures are 20 degrees in January and the pantry is waning.

Beekeepers that started this year will reach the pinnacle of their beekeeping in March 2019. Then they will have bees-a-plenty and the race to stay ahead of the bees becomes an exciting and enjoyable problem. Using this year’s drawn comb they will explode. The bees will be saying, “Scotty, give me all you’ve got.” and you’ll be saying, “Captain, I don’t think she can take much more! She’s gonna swarm!” (pardon the paraphrase).

But, back to the topic at hand – building better winter bees. Time now to step up your game one more time before we enter the long dull days of winter. Although most days in the Midlands of South Carolina allow for the bees to fly they won’t be flying much because there won’t be anything out there. And you’ll be stuck inside wishing for Spring to come and waiting for that first Red Maple bloom, or with your ear to the side of the hive listening for their hum as they convert honey into heat.

So, assess them now and and get them flying towards a hive full of strong winter bees and a hive filled with lots of stores for the long winter ahead. Go for it! Build better bees!

Picture: Early Spring bees. Notice no leaves on the trees yet.

Poor Man’s Yellow Jacket Trap

Tags

beekeeping, beekeeping pests, pests, yellow jacket trap, yellow jackets

I’ve made several traps in the past with varying degrees of success. Here’s one specifically designed that allows the yellow jackets to enter but not the honey bees. I think it is a 5/32 size hole. Last year I tinkered with the mix formula. Instead of totally sweet which would attract the honey bees I stumbled onto a mix of apple sauce, vinegar, and a spoonful of sugar (just enough to get a fermentation going). The yellow jackets like the CO2 and I think and the vinegar is not attractive to the honey bees. I used a 2 liter bottle and filled it about half way full in a short time. If you get your bait mix down it will not attract the bees at all and you can then open up the entrances for the yellow jackets.

Honeycomb Cheese Wheel by snapshotsincursive

Tags

cheese and honey, comb honey, honey recipe, recipe

What’s Cooking in Gail’s Kitchen? Equal Measures: Honeycomb Cheese Wheel! Remember when you were a kid and for fun you puckered up with those candy red wax lips? Me and my girlfriends would put them on, batt our eyes, sashay our hips, and laugh hysterically. Most often we’d find ourselves chewing on the sugary insides before spitting them out into tiny red blobs on our way home from school. I’m sure that made quite an impression on the neighborhood boys. Well today’s honeycomb is a distant cousin, twice-removed, to those artificial candy lips. Even better, raw honeycomb is completely safe to eat and naturally sweet. A little goes a long way simply because it is seeping with honey. Dress it up with a wheel of Camembert or Brie cheese, seasoned with a clove of garlic and a couple of sprigs from the herb garden. Spread it across baguette slices for an open-air treat.

Get the full recipe here: Honeycomb Cheese Wheel — snapshotsincursive