Around the nation, beekeepers are experiencing the primary ugly withdrawal signs of going ‘chilly turkey‘ … the beginning of the now not beekeeping season. After the hustle and bustle of the overdue summer time honey harvest, adopted by way of feeding and treating, there is all at once not anything to do.
Neatly, most likely now not not anything, however undoubtedly little or no in comparison to the peak of the season which was once only a few quick weeks in the past.
Abruptly weekends seem so much longer, there’s no want for an extra moved quickly body development consultation midweek, and the excuse of ‘simply nipping to the apiary to test on issues’ (and so keep away from the showering up) now not works {{1}}.
If the elements stays beneficial the lawn can in the end get some desperately-needed consideration. Now not reducing the grass does now not automagically create a wildflower meadow, or the rest shut. It simply leaves a tussocky swathe of coarse grass on which the lawnmower chokes to a standstill {{2}}.
And, if the elements is detrimental, then there are likely some adorning or DIY chores jobs that you’ve got studiously have shyed away from since final March.
Or, the March sooner than that.
This painful withdrawal length solely lasts a month or so. The elements steadily stays just right sufficient that the bees are flying properly, so it feels somewhat bizarre now not examining colonies or doing probably the most myriad of different jobs that stay us busy all summer time.
It feels abnormal to not have to test issues within the hives, or upload issues to the hives, or take away issues from the hives.
Past due flowering borage and lavender in my lawn is getting loads of consideration from honey and bumble bees, each seeking to take advantage of the restricted nectar and pollen resources which are nonetheless last.
And, as soon as they are long past (the bees, the nectar and the pollen), the coming of shorter days and lengthy, darkish evenings, imply that the season is easily and actually over.
However there is all the time subsequent yr to take into consideration.
The beekeeping author
For a beekeeping author this limbo length – between the labours of summer time and the iciness arrangements for the season forward – is a tough one.
There is necessarily no beekeeping to jot down about, and it is more than likely too quickly to meaningfully talk about making plans and preparation for subsequent season.
Posts (and talks) which are highest favored – for instance, quantified relating to feedback or questions – are the ones which are well timed.
That is why I do not write in regards to the mechanics of queen rearing in November. It isn’t related to the majority of my readership, maximum of whom are from the Northern Hemisphere.
Even if I do know there are a large number of common readers in Australia and New Zealand, it is merely now not sensible to cater for ~4% of the overall readership with well timed posts about Spring growth, queen rearing or swarm regulate as the times listed here are shortening and ideas are turning to snowboarding, or Christmas … or extra elaborate excuses to keep away from the adorning and gardening.
So, what do I write about?
Do I recount a chain of faintly a laugh or vaguely informative anecdotes about what went proper – or extra more than likely flawed – with the season simply long past? {{3}}
Regardless of doing an inexpensive quantity of beekeeping throughout the yr, the ones ‘informative or a laugh’ anecdotes are restricted and treasured. They want to be rationed out somewhat … there is a lengthy iciness forward, and I do not wish to use them all of sudden.
Blind ’em with science
As a substitute, most likely I must write about one of the crucial nice science that is been finished with honey bees this yr?
And now not simply this yr. There is a nearly infinite provide of subject material stretching again a long time, a lot of which is little identified, a few of which could be very related to our bees (or even our beekeeping), and virtually all of which is rarely discussed within the howto-type knowledge Googled by way of beekeepers looking for a proof of the way to do a Pagden or Taranov and which is the ‘higher’ approach of swarm regulate.
On this example, as is steadily the case, the ‘why?’ is extra attention-grabbing than the ‘how?’.
However as an entire life in instructional analysis has demonstrated “All science and no play makes Jack a lifeless boy”, or one thing like that.
I am mindful that some readers do not respect the science. They forestall studying on the first graph (through which case, I have misplaced them already), their eyes glaze over when phrases like ‘temporal polyethism’ seem {{4}}, or they only don’t care about whether or not issues are vital or now not.
🤔
There is a complete library of phenomenology within the literature, with some authors many times demonstrating how unaware they’re of the variation between correlation and causation. This library is solely rivalled in dimension by way of the only on beekeeping myths.
Many readers simply wish to know the recipe for skinny syrup, or whether or not they may be able to use oxalic acid when there are supers at the hive (and neither of those subjects are in particular attention-grabbing).
Ho hum.
This submit was once in the beginning going to be about undertaker bees, necrophoresis, hygienic behaviour and the pong of a corpse. Those are all interesting (and similar) topics, however most likely too science-y after the dialogue of dancing bees final week.
In all probability all over again?
As a substitute, I will intermingle some dialogue of the final colonies I checked out and the timing of iciness bee manufacturing.
Which is able to inevitably contain somewhat of science 😉.
Some, now not no, beekeeping
My honey supers have been got rid of at the 20th of August. At the similar afternoon I added a unmarried 12.5 kg block of fondant and two Apivar strips to every hive.
The colonies have been nonetheless bulging with bees, and this was once in particular evident as I might cleared 3-4 supers down right into a unmarried brood field. They have been overflowing the sides on the best of the field, and really extensive care was once obligatory including the framed, stressed queen excluder (QE) to improve the fondant. I equipped header house for the fondant, both the usage of an inverted polycarbonate crownboard or an empty tremendous. This offers the bees somewhat of ‘elbow room’ and more than likely prevents them bearding out of the doorway on hotter days.
Nearly the entire colonies nonetheless had loads of brood; except for for one queenless colony (shaken out) maximum had 7-9 frames of brood in all phases.
Those were not right kind hive inspections. As a substitute, they have been cursory tests to seek out the ‘edges’ of the brood nest so I knew the place to place the Apivar strips.
That finished, I bid adieu to the bees, and tottered off to extract the honey.
One month later …
I mixed a circuitous honey supply travel with a talk over with to the apiaries to reposition the Apivar strips across the abruptly shrinking brood nest. It was once a gorgeous day with heat sunshine and fluffy white clouds, despite the fact that by way of overdue afternoon – after I were given to the hives – it was once cooling abruptly, emphasising the fast-approaching autumn.
Why ‘shrinking’?
The egg-laying price of the queen slows from midsummer till mid/overdue autumn. Relying upon the latitude, the age of the queen, the elements and the forage to be had, some queens decelerate and ‘close up store’ previous than others.
Some by no means forestall laying, with the colony rearing decreased quantities of brood all iciness.
Alternatively, in my a part of Scotland {{5}} egg laying slows in July, is at beautiful low ranges by way of late-September and has typically stopped totally a month later.
And this was once evident after I temporarily searched throughout the containers for the outer edge of the brood nest.
Fewer bees and not more brood
The very first thing to note was once that the numbers of bees have been a lot decreased. The containers have been nonetheless well-populated, however a pant or two of smoke around the best of the brood field driven virtually they all down {{6}}, somewhat than growing wriggling ‘gloops’ of bees cascading over the outer edges of the field.
I got rid of the dummy board and the outer body (now packed tight with capped shops) and break up the frames at probably the most Apivar strips to make some house. I then moved against the center of the field, leaping two frames at a time, merely in search of the brink of the brood nest.
In maximum hives the brood nest was once no multiple or two frames, a number of had no evident sealed brood and none had greater than 3 frames.
I integrated the qualifying ‘evident’ as this was once now not a rigorous inspection. I did not trouble in search of eggs {{7}} and did not shake bees from the frames. Even in colonies missing sealed brood, the central body or two contained an arc of shops over ’empty’ comb, and it is relatively conceivable that the queen was once nonetheless laying small quantities of eggs on this house.
The decreased inhabitants of grownup bees displays the huge adjustments within the colony because it prepares for iciness. Necessarily all the inhabitants of bees is changed, with the short-lived summer time bees being changed with long-lived iciness bees.
However this transition isn’t ‘like for like’. The whole collection of bees within the inhabitants could also be reducing. The summer time bee inhabitants would possibly achieve 30,000+, however the iciness bee inhabitants is considerably smaller, even at first of the iciness.
Now you notice it, now you do not
I’m going to segue from beekeeping apply to honey bee principle in a couple of paragraphs, however must first remark at the fondant block added to the colony in August.
The vast majority of hives had emptied the 12.5 kg block of fondant, leaving simply the propolised blue plastic ‘husk’ over the QE.
This fondant has been saved, now not ate up. The brood field was once reassuringly heavy, and any frames now not occupied by way of brood have been packed cast with capped shops.
Eliminating this ‘husk’ is straightforward. Grasp the central ‘hinge’ area (between the 2 – now empty – halves of the block) along with your finger and thumb and pull upwards. The higher and decrease facet of the bag it will be lined in bees, however doing it like this lets you then shake them off into the ‘funnel’ created by way of the encompassing empty tremendous.
The bag will virtually undoubtedly be caught all the way down to the QE, however this blue plastic is simply too thick for the bees to bite or drag down into the brood nest.
Simply stay on gently tugging and it is going to ultimately pull loose.
As an apart, do not ever use Clingfilm to hide the face of the fondant – both when the usage of complete blocks, or pitiful little 200 g lumps of the stuff to ‘best up’ the colony if it feels too mild. The bees bite the Clingfilm, drag it down into the nest and make a proper mess.
If the hive does really feel too mild, give them no less than 1-2 kg. You can not inform when a colony is underweight by way of a couple of hundred grams, it saves repeated visits and the bees will use it for Spring growth. Right here endeth the lesson …
With the bag got rid of, the tremendous is prised off, the bees shaken again onto the highest of the QE which is gently smoked after which got rid of.
And then you’ll reposition the Apivar strips.
Wintry weather bees
While we all know that the summer time bee and iciness bee inhabitants are totally other, each numerically, physiologically and relating to their longevity, we do not know so much about the appropriate timing of this changeover within the colony.
In part it’s because there are reasonably few research that experience checked out this necessary tournament within the lifecycle of the honey bee, however in large part it’s because it’s most likely multifactorial, with many of those elements (issues) interacting and/or tricky to switch experimentally.
Take into accounts what is taking place because the yr transitions from summer time to autumn; the day period (photoperiod) is lowering, the common temperature is losing (and the utmost and minimal day-to-day temperatures, which can be distinct elements also are lowering {{8}}). In flip, those environmental adjustments lead to a discount of to be had nectar and pollen forage because the numbers of flowering crops and bushes will get smaller.
I may just move on … however you get the overall thought.
Having thought to be one of the crucial elements, take into consideration how it’s possible you’ll personally trade them to analyze whether or not it influences iciness bee manufacturing.
For instance, how may just you scale back day period and nonetheless permit the bees to forage for nectar and pollen? And, in the event you suppose that is tough, what about decreasing the imply day-to-day temperature quicker to peer if the onset of iciness bee manufacturing is introduced ahead?
Alternatively, regardless of those technical difficulties, there are research relationship again to the 1970’s that investigated a job for photoperiod and temperature in without delay influencing iciness bee manufacturing, and it’s transparent that neither totally account for the phenomenon.
However most likely they not directly affect one thing else that is accountable for the transition to iciness bee manufacturing?
Pollen
It has lengthy been identified that discounts in day period and temperature are related to decreased forage – nectar and pollen – availability within the atmosphere.
Moreover, a number of research – and elementary statement – have proven that the provision of pollen particularly has a profound impact upon brood rearing.
Brief-term non-availability of pollen e.g. 3 days of rain, ends up in cannibalism of younger larvae and a discounted larval length sooner than capping (Schmickl and Crailsheim, 2001), with longer sessions of pollen dearth leading to all the cessation of brood rearing (Mattila and Otis, 2006).
So, if pollen turns into restricting in autumn, and this leads to decreased ranges of brood rearing, how may just this affect the transition to iciness bee manufacturing?
To know this we want to return to the mid-1950’s when Maurizio (1954 {{9}}) demonstrated that queenless colonies in summer time (i.e. with out a brood to rear) produced long-lived bees that have been physiologically very similar to iciness bees.
The reason is going one thing like this … if the queen is got rid of from a colony, any staff that emerge after her removing could have very little additional brood to rear. As a end result, with out a brood rearing to do, the younger bees within the colony don’t mature to center elderly bees and foragers, however as an alternative stay as juvenile bees {{10}}.
And juvenile bees, produced in mid/overdue autumn, are the iciness bees that can get the colony via till the next Spring.
So, is there any sensible proof that decreased pollen availability induces iciness bee manufacturing?
It simply so occurs that there’s 😉.
Mattila and Otis (2007)
Heather Mattila and Gard Otis investigated a job for pollen (or the dearth thereof) in iciness bee manufacturing. Experimental colonies have been both depleted of pollen the usage of pollen traps implemented from late-August (a remedy regime identified to cut back saved pollen by way of ~60-90%), or supplemented with pollen patties (2:1 w/w with sucrose, with every colony receiving ~1.3 kg of further pollen throughout the find out about length), or untreated and used as controls.
Pollen depletion or supplementation lasted from overdue August to overdue October.
How do you measure iciness bee manufacturing?
When you rely and mark the entire bees that emerge throughout a specific time window, after which have a look at their survival over next days and weeks, you’ll plot a line graph with an inflection level {{11}} that obviously signifies the transfer from prime mortality (the short-lived summer time bees) to low mortality (the long-lived iciness bees).
If the addition or removing of pollen adjustments the location of this inflection level, it means that pollen availability is concerned within the transfer to iciness bee manufacturing.
Within the graphs above, and there are quite a bit extra within the paper, the colonies depleted of pollen (dotted strains) show off an evident trade within the inflection level, indicated with a purple arrow, in comparison with the controls (cast line) and pollen-supplemented colonies (dashed line) marked with a blue arrow.
In consequence, the next percentage bees live to tell the tale at a later sampling date within the pollen-depleted colonies in comparison with the pollen-supplemented or regulate colonies.
The bees reside longer.
For instance, for bees that emerged at the 7th of October (proper graph) and sampled on December 10th (D10; 64 days after the cohort have been marked, indicated with the fairway dotted line), ~50% survived when pollen depleted, compared to ~25% survival of the regulate or pollen supplemented bees.
Nonetheless with me?
OK, that was once heavy going 😓.
The result of the Mattila and Otis (2007) find out about are actually putting and may also be summarised as follows:
- the longevity of staff was once inversely proportional to the extent of brood last to be reared when the employees emerged
- the semblance of long-lived iciness bees didn’t happen till brood rearing declined, which – in flip – was once decided by way of the provision of pollen
- colonies supplemented with pollen in autumn reared brood for longer and behind schedule the manufacturing of iciness bees
- regardless of the timing of iciness bee manufacturing (whether or not complex by way of pollen depletion or behind schedule by way of pollen supplementation) the whole quantity of iciness bees produced was once the similar.
This Mattila and Otis paper is more than likely one of the crucial vital research of iciness bee manufacturing.
If you need a extra complete review of the subject, together with different elements that can be necessary, I counsel you take a look at Christina Grozinger’s evaluation from a decade in the past (Döke et al., 2015).
Too overdue matey!
I gained an e mail from Thorne’s a couple of days in the past asking me if I used to be “excited about your Autumn Varroa remedy” and inspiring me to buy some Apivar.
My preliminary concept was once that it was once a month or so too overdue.
In my revel in, efficient Varroa regulate within the autumn manner including the miticide as quickly after removing of the summer time honey as conceivable. That manner I will be able to be certain the entire iciness bees are reared within the presence of miticide, and as a result an ever-diminishing stage of Varroa mites.
Via combating the iciness bees from being uncovered to Varroa (and the in advance growing old results of the deformed wing virus it transmits when feeding) I will be able to be expecting to have loads of wholesome iciness bees to lend a hand my colonies live to tell the tale to the next Spring.
And so they typically do 😄.
Alternatively, having now re-read the Mattila and Otis find out about for this submit, and given it somewhat extra concept, I must qualify my preliminary reaction (‘Too overdue matey!’) with a caveat in regards to the availability of pollen within the atmosphere.
If considerable pollen is to be had, and the elements is just right sufficient for the bees to get admission to it, then brood rearing will proceed, and iciness bee manufacturing can be behind schedule … so most likely it isn’t too overdue to regard.
If considerable pollen is to be had and the elements stays just right.
Mattila and Otis penned further research at the affect of pollen availability on brood rearing. In doing the background studying for this submit I additionally learn those.
I have already written some distance an excessive amount of this week, so will go back to this topic – pollen and brood rearing – and the results those research have for sensible beekeeping subsequent time.
To be endured …
The Apiarist covers ‘the science, artwork and apply of sustainable beekeeping … so a lot more than honey’ and I write it to keep away from the gardening and DIY chores.
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References
Döke, M.A., Frazier, M., and Grozinger, C.M. (2015) Overwintering honey bees: biology and control. Present Opinion in Insect Science 10: 185–193 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214574515000930.
Mattila, H.R., and Otis, G.W. (2006) Affect of Pollen Nutrition in Spring on Building of Honey Bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Colonies. Magazine of Financial Entomology 99: 604–613 https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/99.3.604.
Mattila, H.R., and Otis, G.W. (2007) Dwindling pollen assets cause the transition to broodless populations of long-lived honeybees every autumn. Ecological Entomology 32: 496–505 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2311.2007.00904.x.
Schmickl, T., and Crailsheim, Okay. (2001) Cannibalism and early capping: process of honeybee colonies in instances of experimental pollen shortages. J Comp Physiol A 187: 541–547 https://doi.org/10.1007/s003590100226.
{{1}}: Do not trouble, I have attempted and failed.
{{2}}: Do not ask how I do know this.
{{3}}: Because it occurs, virtually undoubtedly … however now not till the times have shortened but additional and I get started making plans issues for the season forward.
{{4}}: Apologies, it is more straightforward to make use of a unmarried time period than must many times write one thing like ‘purposeful or behavioural specialisation at explicit ages’.
{{5}}: Having not too long ago moved area this must extra appropriately be written as ‘the a part of Scotland that my bees inhabit’ … which is these days other from my a part of Scotland.
{{6}}: Take into account, this was once overdue afternoon, so the entire foragers have been ‘at house’.
{{7}}: No glasses, cool, early night fading mild, did not have time, did not want to, could not be afflicted and so on.
{{8}}: For instance, you may just have iciness bee manufacturing impartial of the common temperature, however totally attentive to the lowering minimal day-to-day temperatures.
{{9}}: Sadly, this reference is unavailable and the unique is in German, however the effects are described in Mattila and Otis, 2007.
{{10}}: Any oldsters studying this will likely respect how elevating youngsters ages you 😉.
{{11}}: Necessarily the kink within the line the place the summer time bees have died off and the iciness bees stay.