The Magazine for the Bee-Keeping Association of Harrowwww.harrowbeekeepers.co.uk

Vol 66 Winter 2011

Forager

Published by the Harrow Bee-Keeper’s Association by whom this magazine was founded in the year 1946

Editors

J Moore & M P Davey (Consultant)

All correspondence and literary contributions intended for Forager, which goes topress on the 2nd Saturday of each month, should be sent to:

The Forager Editor, 4 Endymion Road, Hatfield, Herts AL10 8ASe-mail: jem2102@mac.com - Tel: 07801 691 265

Association SecretariesHARROWMrs Aline Bowers, 12 Larkfield Ave, Kenton Harrow, Middlesex HA3 8NFTel: 020 8907 9832PINNER & RUISLIPMrs Sue Ryan, 31 Hazeldene Gardens, Hillingdon UB10 9DJ.Tel: 01895 464108EALINGAndy Pedley, 36 Ferrymead Gardens, Greenford, Middlesex UB6 9NF.Tel: 020 8578 7997NORTH LONDONElizabeth Jack, 2 Rookfield Close, London N10 3TR.Tel: 020 8883 2835LONDON BKAJulian Lush, 97 Larkhall Rise, London SW4 6HR.Tel: 020 7622 9407ENFIELD BKAMrs Mary Hunter, 18 Slades Gardens, Enfield EN2 7DR.Tel: 020 8367 8452

Middlesex Federation SecretaryMrs J Telfer, Midwood House, Elm Park Road, Pinner HA5 3LH.Tel: 020 8868 3494

Whilst care is taken to verify the material published, the Editors do not accept responsibility for theaccuracy of all statements made by the contributors, nor do they necessarily share the views expressed.

Forager

Diary Dates Vol 66 Autumn 2012

March 4th Work Party

March 10th Saturday. Beginners Course, Part 1 - 10am -to 3:30pm

March 11th Practical for Beginners Help needed please

March 17th Saturday. Beginners Course, Part 2 - 10am -to 3:30pm

March 18th Beginners practical day HELP NEEDED

March 31st Saturday. Beginners Course, Part 3 - Half day only 10am to12:30pm

April 1st Bee diseases and recognition

April 8th Work Party Note second Sunday

April 21, 22nd BBKA Spring Convention at Harper Adams University,Newport, Shropshire. TF10 8NB

May 6th Work Party

May 13th Swarm prevention and Making nuclei.

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Forager

Apologies for the Winter edition coming at the beginning of Spring, computerproblems (new hard disc) and then software problems, spring edition hard on theheels of the Winter edition. I’m sure winter hasn’t given up though, we usuallyget one last cold snap before it gives way to spring.

In this season’s Forager we have a variety of subject covered in Beelines, ourfriend the Woodpecker, Monsanto and plastic hives... to name three, plus articleson Kate Middleton’s facial cream, how to trap a Vespa velutina nigrithorax...and Matt Marsh’s How I started to be a bad beekeeper part 2.

Happy Reading

Jeremy MooreEditor

Editorial

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IN THIS ISSUE

Page 3 Bad Beekeeper Part 2Page 4 Asian Hornet TrapPage 6 Bee tonguesPage 9 Urban BeekeepingPage 10 Beelines

Please note that allcontributions intended

for inclusion in theSpring issue of Forager

must be with theeditorial office by the

15th of March,at the latest.

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Articles and Notes

How I Started To Be A Bad Bee Keeper – Part 2I never lost my interest in bees when growing up – anything on the news, inthe press or any documentary immediately drew my attention. And of coursethis always triggered that part of my bad bee keeper’s brain as to knowing thatone day when I was old, I may get the chance of taking up the craft.

I was now working in a school, a job which was supposed to be a stop gapafter being made redundant from Safeway Stores head office in Hayes. 6 yearslater I was still there – [ I’m not anymore but reasons why I left will beapparent later ] About 4 years in to my time at the school a man joined whowould be taking the Science Technician’s role – Greg. I was the ICTTechnician and we soon developed a very good friendship. We shared similarinterests [History of IT & computers, nature, the outdoors, science] – hebecame not only a good friend of mine but a very good friend of my family.My oldest son used to come in to the school during the holidays and the twoof them soon became friends – very similar to the friendship I had with thebee keeper neighbor all those years ago.

It was after about a year that during just a conversation with Greg that thetopic switched to bees – something had been in the news or a documentaryhad been on. My bad bee keeper’s brain immediately took over theconversation and I mentioned my interest, my experiences as a 6 year old andhow when I retired I wanted to take up the hobby. Greg grinned and quietlyinformed me he had kept bees for years but had not done so for quite a whileand as a throw away statement said it would be great for the school to startkeeping them – the school had the grounds and he was already slowly tidyingup the nature reserve. This would be the perfect spot for them. Howeverworking in an educational environment where red tape, and over the tophealth and safety issues combined with panicky parents we both knew it wasa very unlikely the idea would get off the ground.

Greg being one to never take no for an answer pursued the idea with the Headof Science who was also keen on nature & was very instrumental in gettingthe school’s nature reserve back into a working / teaching environment. Beesmust have been in the news at the time as even one of the students had saidsomething similar to the head of science. Armed with the idea the Head ofScience agreed to put it in front of the school governors and head, but deepdown knowing it would be un-likely permission would be granted because ofthe health and safety aspects. But then something strange happened…..

Matt Mars h

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Kate Middleton's Skin Secret: Bee Venom?Daily Mail

If you thought you were under a lot of pressure to have clear skin, think again.Kate Middleton is constantly scrutinized (as of right now, she is under 24/7baby watch) so it's no wonder that she wants perfect skin. Apparently, to getthat, she has gone to the Duchess of Cornwall for a recommendation -- a beesting facial.

According to the Daily Mail, Camilla sent Kate to beauty therapist DeborahMitchell who is famous in the UK for her "non-surgical face lifts." Mitchellhas been working with Camilla for about six years now, and is currentlyhelping Kate out by doing treatments in her home.

The facial contains a bee venom mask which holds on percent bee venom (aproduct that tricks the skin's surface into thinking it's been stung which thenincreases blood flow, collagen and elasticity). Mitchell then mixes the venomwith manuka honey, shea butter, rose and lavender (among other secretingredients).

With fans such as Victoria Beckham, Kylie and Dannii Minogue and MichellePfeiffer, she may just be on to something -- what Mitchell describes as an"organic Botox." The facial costs about $257 or 165 pounds. If Pippa couldinspire a rise in butt lifts, maybe Kate will cause bee facials to be the next bigthing.

(Editors note.... and to think we get this treatment free all through the season)

National Bee Unit Asian Hornet trap

The Asian Hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax, is an aggressive predator ofhoney bees and of other beneficial species. It has recently extended its nativegeographical range from Asia to mainland Europe following an accidentalintroduction to France, is now also present in Spain and has been seen inBelgium. The adult hornets are highly mobile, the rate of spread acrossFrance is approximately 100km per year. There is now great concern that thisexotic insect will migrate to the UK, either by hitching a ride on importedgoods or simply by flying across the channel. So is there anything we can do

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to help in the battle against this pest? Here are some simple tips…

Identification of Asian Hornet

The Asian hornet is slightly smaller than the native European hornet (Vespacrabro) and is almost entirely black with only the 4th abdominal segmentbeing yellow. The head is black with an orange face and the lower ends of thelegs are yellow. If you see Asian hornets try to take a photo or catch aspecimen, for identification purposes, but avoid being stung. Beekeepers andthe public should report any suspect sightings via the Alert System:alert_nonnative@ceh.ac.uk

Trapping overwinter hornet queens

In France V. velutina adults are actively flying from spring to late autumn, butthe key life-stage to eliminate is the mated queen, as just one such foundresscan produce an entire colony. (There is good genetic evidence that thespreading population of V. velutina across France and Spain arose after asingle incursion). For this reason, detection and removal of any V. velutina,especially after hibernation, in early spring or late autumn, is likely to havethe greatest impact on limiting establishment and spread. Reports fromFrance suggest that in areas where spring trapping has been used, subsequentnumbers of Asian hornet nests are reduced by as much as 97% (2 or 3 nests intrapping areas versus >70 nests where no traps have been hung).

At the end of hibernation emergent Asian hornet queens have a raised energyrequirement, and therefore show a preference for sweet foods. Sweet baits

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are thus the most effective for the first captures of foundresses. TheAssociation de développement de l’apiculture en Aquitaine (ADAAQ), theCentre national de développement apicole (CNDA) and the Office pourl'information et la documentation en apiculture (OPIDA) recommend amixture of beer and sugar, but other recipes include sweet mixtures of wine,sugar, cassis, water etc. Dates for hanging traps will vary with local climate.In Aquitaine, France, the first sorties by Asian hornet queens begin betweenmid-January and late February. French beekeepers place their traps in treesand on hive stands, in and around affected apiaries, as well as at other criticallocations such as piles of wood, stones & tiles etc., which are all favourablehibernation sites. It is important that only the target insect is captured, so ifthe European hornet is being caught the traps should be removed. Traps are

hung at about the height of a person.

Making a hornet trap

A variety of traps are available forcatching predatory adult hornets “onthe wing”, including Asian hornets.Preliminary comparisons of variousdesigns for use against V. velutina inEurope have shown that funneltraps arethe most efficient. Hornet traps canbe purchased over-the-counter, butFrench beekeepers are frequentlyresorting to home-made equivalents.These can be made at minimal cost.Most of these share the same basicdesign: a plastic flask or bottle,containing a food attractant/bait, overwhich is inverted a funnel; the insectsenter the funnel and crawl/drop into theattractant mixture from which theycannot easily escape; trapped insectssubsequently drown. This “pit- fall”effect can be enhanced by treating theinner walls of the trap with talc, thusmaximising the numbers of individualsentering and minimising the numbersof escapees. (*note that the orifice ofthe funnel should be 7 mm, and nowider, as this is will assist preventingthe larger, native, European hornetfrom passing through)

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Other husbandry techniques

Another helpful husbandry practice includes allowing vegetation aroundapiaries; tall grass in front of hives hinders the Asian hornets’ prey-capturebehaviours, limiting their ability to “hawk” for honey bee workers on thewing. Of course, taking sensible precautions such as not leaving wet framesin the open after honey extraction, will avoid attracting hornets (Asian orEuropean) to the apiary.

Reducing entrance size

The latest guidance given to beekeepers by ADAAQ- CNDA-OPIDA, is thathive entrances need to be reduced, using entrance blocks, to a height of 5.5mm to prevent Asian hornets from entering. It is the experience of French

beekeepers that traditional metal entrance strips are ineffective at excludingV. velutina.

Hornet Hawking a bee entrance

National Bee Unit Food and Environment Research Agency Sand Hutton, York. YO41 1LZ

Telephone 01904 462510 - e mail nbu@fera.gsi.gov.ukNBU Web site: www.nationalbeeunit.com December 2011

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Swarming bees bring panic to Regent StThousands of bees brought Regent Street to a standstill today as theyswarmed around a lamp post, causing shoppers to panic and traffic tojudder to a halt.

Beekeepers were called to the scene to control the swarm which is believedto have been hunting for a new hive.

Emma Clark, who works in Hanover Street, was shocked to see the swarmwhen she went out to get lunch. "People were giving it a wide berth," shesaid. "They were flapping a little bit and running past. It's just not reallywhat shoppers expect to see.

"I managed to get within six feet to take a picture before my nerves gaveout."

John Chapple of the London Beekeepers Association said: "The swarmwould have comefrom a hive veryclose by. They oftenstop to check theyhave the queen withthem before movingon to their newhome. They don'tpose any danger forpeople - they weresimply regroupingbefore moving on."

Crown Estates,which owns much ofRegent Street andalso owns severalhives on buildingsnearby, said: "Theseare not from any ofour hives."

London EveningStandard

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A new generation of pesticidesBy Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor, Beforeitsnews

Thursday, 20 January 2011

A new generation of pesticides is making honeybees far more susceptible todisease, even at tiny doses, and may be a clue to the mysterious colonycollapse disorder that has devastated bees across the world, the USgovernment's leading bee researcher has found. Yet the discovery hasremained unpublished for nearly two years since it was made by the USDepartment of Agriculture's Bee Research Laboratory.

The release of such a finding from the American government's own bee labwould put a major question mark over the use of neonicotinoid insecticides– relatively new compounds which mimic the insect-killing properties ofnicotine, and which are increasingly used on crops in the US, Britain andaround the world.

Bayer, the German chemicals giant which developed the insecticides andmakes most of them, insists that they are safe for bees if used properly, butthey have already been widely linked to bee mortality. The US findings raisequestions about the substance used in the bee lab's experiment, imidacloprid,which was Bayer's top-selling insecticide in 2009, earning the company£510m. The worry is that neonicotinoids, which are neurotoxins – that is,they attack the central nervous system – are also "systemic", meaning theyare taken up into every part of the plant which is treated with them,including the pollen and nectar. This means that bees and other pollinatinginsects can absorb them and carry them back to their hives or nests – even ifthey are not the insecticide's target species.

In Britain, more than 1.4 million acres were treated with the chemical in2008, as part of total neonicotinoid use of more than 2.5 million acres –about a quarter of Britain's arable cropland.

The American study, led by Dr Jeffrey Pettis, research leader at the USgovernment bee lab in Beltsville, Maryland, has demonstrated that theinsects' vulnerability to infection is increased by the presence ofimidacloprid, even at the most microscopic doses. Dr Pettis and his teamfound that increased disease infection happened even when the levels of theinsecticide were so tiny that they could not subsequently be detected in thebees, although the researchers knew that they had been dosed with it.

Dr Pettis told The Independent his research had now been put forward forpublication. "[It] was completed almost two years ago but it has been toolong in getting out," he said. "I have submitted my manuscript to a newjournal but cannot give a publication date or share more of this with you at

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We await to see wether the above average temperatures for Septemberand November will effect the wintering of our bees. Though it is acomfort to see the bees in flight searching for the last resources for theirwinter rest. The down side is that all this flying about will be a drain,perhaps, on the summer crop. The Autumn has been very dry which suitsthe bees, they do not like to fly in the rain.

August 3.9” rainfall

September 1.5” “

October 0.5” “

November 1.3” “

Preparing my hives in the out-apiaries I was anxious that the mouseguards were fixed OK, my remedy was to bring along a screwdriverwhich could be inserted in the holes to confirm safe passage for the bees,plus the netting against the Woodpecker which seemed to have increasedin numbers. One beekeeper tried to claim on his insurance for thedamage done by the Woodpeckers, no it was not for a hive, but for hisgarden shed. He counted 102 holes - a hungry bird. The Woodpeckers gofor the adult bees and any brood present. A hard frost can be the signalfor an attack. The Green Woodpecker used to be called the rain birdbecause their laughing chatter predicted sudden downpours. Why?...Woodpeckers waffle all the time, but we only hear them in the still airthat is present just before a storm.

This summer, talking to a beekeeper about two hives, he was willing topay £90 for a Buckfast strain queen, he felt it was cheaper than the £130for a nuq with the said queen. These queens have been productive andgentle to handle. Many beekeepers have spent very much more on newhives, an attractive design gets the beekeeper purse open. Beelines havea Darlington, Europa, WBC as well as all my Nationals... Oh yes, aplastic hive with National dimensions purchased in the eighties, itarrives a pleasant honey colour, it was not a success. The floor collapsed

Beelines

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on use, too heavy contents. The lid warped by the heat of the sun,making it not bee-proof. The main problem was the affect of the hive-tool when prising the boxes apart. Vaseline smears on contact surfaceshelped, but made the hive messy. No doubt the new plastic polystyrenehives are much more robust. It was a light clean hive but unsuitable formigratory beekeeping, the strapping dug into the boxes.

The USA agrochemical giant, Monsanto, is now producing chemicals tohelp our bees. They have purchased Beeologics which producedRemebee that prevents IAPV IsraeliAcute Paralysis Virus. Thusreducing its effect on Colony Collapse Disorder. Another product is onthe way Remebee Pro which also helps fight viruses and strengthens thebee immune system.

Isaac Newton was the first to describe the makeup of light in the coloursof the rainbow. He stated that there were seven colours, which wasinfluenced by his strong religious outlook. Seven was a special numberin the Bible, cosmology - i.e. seven planets and the seven deadly sins.The blue part of the spectrum was divided into indigo and violet. Todayblue and violet are recognised with indigo withdrawn. Does this alter ourbee view. In Richard Dawkins book Climbing Mount Improbable, page238, he gives an interesting insight into the bee/flower relationship, herefers to the bees ultraviolet garden, which is unseen by the beekeeper.

Recently my wife and I arrived at Clarence House, London, by coach(without horsed in front). Touring the vegetable garden we stumbledupon the Royal Head Gardener. When questioned about the two newhives among the plants, we were informed that John had brought theminto the garden five weeks ago. That John, was our beekeeper ofMiddlesex and London... John Chappel. The gardener said that the hiveswould be re-queened each year by Italian queens to reduce swarmingand maintain a docile stock. Well done John for giving beekeeping sucha high profile.

Best regards for the New Year.

M P Davy

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this time."

However, it is known about, because Dr Pettis and a member of his team,Dennis van Engelsdorp, of Penn State University – both leaders in researchfocusing on colony collapse disorder (CCD) – have spoken about it at somelength in a film about bee deaths which has been shown widely in Europe,but not yet in Britain or the US – although it has been seen by TheIndependent.

In The Strange Disappearance of The Bees, made by the American film-maker Mark Daniels, Pettis and van Engelsdorp reveal that they exposedtwo groups of bees to the well-known bee disease nosema. One of thegroups was also fed tiny doses of imidacloprid. There was a higher uptakeof infection in the bees fed the insecticide, even though it could notsubsequently be detected, which raises the possibility that such aphenomenon occurring in the wild might be simply undetectable.

Although the US study remains unpublished, it has been almost exactlyreplicated by French researchers at the National Institute for AgriculturalResearch in Avignon. They published their study in the journalEnvironmental Microbiology and said: "We demonstrated that the interactionbetween nosema and a neonicotinoid (imidacloprid) significantly weakenedhoneybees."