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We continue with relatively hot weather in Gainesville, but an increase in afternoon thundershowers and so the fire danger seems somewhat diminished in Florida. Drought, however, continues to plague much of the
nation. Of course, the real problematic season is almost upon us with some 16 named storms, 8 hurricanes, 5 being intense in the
forecast. Thus, I anxiously am cocking my eye toward the tropics as August comes to a close. At the moment, Tropical Storm Gert is churning up the Atlantic, far from the Sunshine State.
I am just back from a whirlwind tour of eastern Washington. I visited my Nephew who lives in Spokane and colleague and Bee Culture columnist Steve Sheppard on his home ground in Pullman, Washington in that region called the
Palouse. Steve's research at Washington State University mainly includes collecting, freezing and preserving honey bee semen collected from elsewhere (generally Europe), all in an attempt to increase the genetic diversity of the U.S. bee population. He is working with Sue Cobey, instrumental inseminationist extraordinaire, setting up nuclei with artificially inseminated native queens, some donated by local producers. The Palouse it turns out is a great place to isolate bee populations and keep them quarantined until checked for any suspicious diseases. There are no wild bee nests in evidence and few places swarms might survive, given the incredibly intensive agriculture, featuring wheat and various legumes, in the area. A trip to the grizzly bear cage on campus to see students feeding salmon popsickles to the hungry ursines was a highlight. Steve's lab also does most of the disease diagnosis for the Managed Pollinator
CAP Project. He holds an
endowed chair, named after P.F. Roy Thurber, a well-known writer for bee magazines in the past, whose writings are cataloged under the title:
Bee Chats, Tips and Gadgets. If that isn't enough, Steve is also chairman of the
Entomology Department at WSU: For more information on Washington apiculture see an
article written by former bee inspector Jim Bach.
National Honey Bee Day, previously "Awareness Day" is upon us. This celebration has morphed into nation-wide movement with
many events scheduled. Here in Northeast Florida, the
Alachua County Beekeepers Club is also sponsoring a showing of the the movie Queen of the Sun.
Focus on Canada: Take a look at the Calgary Beekeepers
web site . Lots of good information here. Thanks to Gertie Adair for sending me the Alberta Bee News. The August edition contains great articles, including Ottowa's spending CA$244,000 for stock improvement, and recommendations from Dr. Medhat Nasr, Alberta's Provincial Apiculturist on what can be done now to reduce the amount of chemicals colonies are exposed to: 1) avoid unnecessary use of chemicals, 2) use genetic resistant (hygienic) bees, 3) use new equipment; replace frames every 5 years, 4) sterilize used equipment before reuse, 5) avoid using bee repellents to remove honey (use blowers). Canada it should be noted has had increased bee losses like much of the beekeeping world, but Colony Collapse Disorder (
CCD) has not been identified as something of much concern.
Deborah Burns, my editor for
Storey's Guide to Keeping Honey Bees is looking to contact and interview some southern urban beekeepers about experiences with wintering colonies and Africanized honey bees. Contact her via e-mail deb.burns@storey.com. Recent news about the book is good. It continues to sell well across the nation. I can access sales directly from
Amazon.com. In the last 8 weeks, between June 13, 2011 and August 7, 201, 379 copies were sold. Most were sold in the Albany, Troy and Schnectady NY and Tacoma-Seattle, WA regions.
How honey bees ward off the effects of pesticides in a topic of much recent concern according to a
Catch The Buzz posting. It turns out substances known as cytochrome P450s are involved, but it is concluded that they are not omnipotent and can be "used up" or "occupied": "This suggests that these honey bee cytochrome P450s are not particularly specialized," Berenbaum said. "That raises the possibility that a nontoxic dose of tau-fluvalinate may become toxic if an enzyme that is principally involved in its detoxification is otherwise occupied with a different chemical."
My good friend Dr. Eric Mussen found himself under the gun after Africanized honey bees attacked a man and his dogs in Modesto, CA. He concluded it was “probably an isolated case, and there probably aren’t any more Africanized honey bee colonies in the northern San Joaquin Valley. "I don’t think they moved there on their own,” he is reported to have said. “They probably swarmed during or just after the almond pollination season. The migratory beekeeper left but the bees didn’t.” Unfortunately, the Africanized bees nesting in shrubbery along a well-traveled pedestrian and bicycle route and attacked a 70-year-old man and his three dogs on July 5 after one dog disturbed them. The man received as many as 60 bee stings, apparently, mostly on the face, as he ran an eighth of a mile to a residence. No doubt this incident will be featured in Dr. Mussen's next newsletter,
From the UC Apiaries.
Last month I mentioned a pesticide poisoning in Florida due to mosquito spraying. Recently, New York City beekeepers are being
warned to ensure their hives are not harmed by the same thing. and a list of frequently-asked-questions on this has been
published. Beekeepers must always be constantly alert during this time of year for mosquito control activities.
A Catch the Buzz
report reveals the following: "Purveyors of conventional and genetically-modified (GM) crops -- and the pesticides and herbicides that accompany them -- are finally getting a taste of their own legal medicine. Minnesota's Star Tribune has reported that the Minnesota Court of Appeals recently ruled that a large organic farm surrounded by chemical-laden conventional farms can seek damages for lost crops, as well as lost profits, caused by the illegal trespassing of pesticides and herbicides on its property."
"The National Honey Board (NHB) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners (NAPNAP). Together, the organizations will develop a honey education program, based on recent research findings that uncovered widespread confusion surrounding the age when honey can be introduced to young children. Focused on health professionals who deal directly with parents of young children, education efforts will dispel honey misconceptions, explain the benefits of honey and remind parents that honey can be given to children older than one year of age."
It's about time that some attention to infant use of honey is being given. “It’s widely known that honey shouldn’t be fed to infants, but most people don’t know why or at what age it can be introduced. The truth is that honey can be introduced to a child at one year of age. It’s important that health care professionals and families with young children understand the facts about honey."
The National Honey Board (NHB) confirmed earlier this year through focus groups and a nationally fielded online survey that there is a need for honey education. Research revealed that moms are confused about when to feed honey to their children, citing reasons for avoidance like allergens, bacteria and the like. But an educational program of NHB and NAPNAP would set the
record straight:
There are new rules, which also affect beekeepers concerning the hiring of migrant labor, according to Florida's State Apiarist, Jerry Hayes. Check the
document to bee sure if you are involved. "Of particular note is the new requirement that beekeepers using the H-2A Program and moving workers across state lines must be registered as Farm Labor Contractors in Florida and in any state in which they place their colonies, if other states have a farm labor contractor registration requirement."
Check out the selected links for August 2011 at
Publish2.com. These include those associated with learning about pollination, the colors of pollen and several things about urban beekeeping on roofs and whether there is a adequate forage in cities, etc.
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Gleanings from the August 2011 edition of
Bee Culture :
Remember that Bee Culture continues to be available in a
digital edition:
John Yoder, Freeport, OH asks advertisers and authors to provide snail mailing addresses. Ray Norton sounds off on roadway plants; he is seeing fewer and fewer insects along the roads. Jackie Conrad also writes he is seeing more and more chemical treatment of lawns also reducing insect populations. Larry Weinberg, Eugene, OR offers advice on getting rid of ground nesting insects; he says the best bet is household dish detergent about a cup/gallon of water. Patrick Driscoll asks Jim Thompson to come up with a grading system in conjunction with his article on
equipment sizes Robyn Martin of the Australian government writes that Editor Flottum's
Catch the Buzz on Aussie Asian bees was helpful in getting the government to reconsider its decision on eradiciation.
New Summer Reading includes the 4th Edition of The Beekeeper's Handbook by D. Sammataro and A. Avitable, Louisiana Honey Plants by Dale Pollet, and An Holistic Way of Saving the Honeybee. And look for new
baby beetle blasters at your nearest supply house.
Editor Flottum describes the progress of his top bar hive, contrasting it with the Beehaus from the UK he recently installed. He also holds forth on a newspaper article from his hometown in Wisconsin written by a classmate. Read why a farmer can curse the mud, while at the same time bless the rain that bought it.
Editor Flottum attempts to figure out how much wax U.S. beekeeping makes, processes, imports and exports. Read that imports are down, while exports are up, making for an interesting article.
Clarence Collison and Audrey Sheridan reflect on the impact of Varroa, specifically with reference to viruses. It's a complex article coming to a simple conclusion; the more mites the more death and deformity for honey bees.
Jennifer Berry finds much to like about drones. Read about drone congregation areas (
DCAs) and how she and crew from University of Georgia might have discovered the first one around a Chic Fil A sign. Finally understand how important drones are for that most important activity, giving up their life in exchange for maximum genetic diversity.
Larry Connor urges beekeepers to pay attention and ask the right questions about their bees. Read why he thinks the skill of critical observation is so important.
John Phipps describes the behavior of two bait hives and how bees investigated them as a possible permanent home. He also concludes that the book, An Holistic Way of Saving the Honey Bee, might appeal to those who look at natural phenomena through the prism of the earth's vibrations.
Norman Gary takes on the topic of using smoke. It's a complex substance and considered essential by most beekeepers. Some, however, don't use it, mostly to their regret. Read how and when to use smoke and also remember that you are also smoking yourself in the process.
Judith Adamson writes about Bay Area Beekeepers and will soon take on those in the Big Apple. Her work is basically a series of interviews, many of which can be seen at the Bay Area
web site.
Gladstone Solomon describes the history or beekeeping in Trinidad and Tobago, 1901 to 2012. Like elsewhere there have been big changes with introduction of Varroa and parasitic mite syndrome (PMS), invasion of Africanized honey bees (not yet in Tobago surprisingly), and the staging of various beekeeping congresses. Finally, read how and why keeping tropical stingless bees is on the upswing, and what is in store for the region in the future.
Jim Tew pens his second column on producing queens. He provides descriptions of the bee egg and possibly moving it along with other transferring (grafting) methods developed for larvae. Stay tuned for the third column coming next month on the most-employed method, developed by Doolittle.
Jim Frazier, et. al, provide an overview of pesticides and their relationship to Colony Collapse Disorder. Read about the gaps in the research in this vital area and where its headed. Current recommendations are mirrored in those by Medhat Nasr detailed elsewhere in this newsletter.
Editor Flottum urges beekeepers to bee calm and take a journey toward glovelessness. Read the importance of simple things like measuring your hand to get the right glove size and cutting he finger tips off before removing the whole thing. A true experiential journey.
Ann Harman asks if beekeepers can see the big picture as the bees do. The really big picture like the climate not the weather. One suggestion is to become a member of Wayne Esaias'
honeybeenet or look at the shifts in
phenology of your and other areas.
Lots of things in All The News That Fits: Read about the Langstroth party commemorating his 200th birthday, less-habitat correlated to more insecticide use, bumblebee decline in Sweden, value added
grants for beekeepers , large-scale honey theft in California, new bettle traps in Australia and installing hives on roofs Down Under, horses being healed by manuka honey, honey bees guarding crops against elephants in Kenya, and the UK refusing to allow sales of New Zealand's "bee venom honey."
Ed Colby in the Bottom Board writes it's all about healthy bees now days. Read what he says about local commercial beekeeper, Lyle Johnston and Dr. Medhat Nasr, Alberta's Provincial Apiarist, who both recently spoke in Colorado and their commitment to you guessed it, healthy bees.
Sincerely,
Malcolm T. Sanford
beeactor@apisenterprises.com
http://apis.shorturl.com
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