London Wildlife Trust: methinks it looks like a badger

Idling through the back passages of the internet, I came across https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/wildlife/species-explorer/animal/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps

The Bee Wolf (Philanthus triangulum) apparently hunts honey bees

Where's Wally this summer?

Here: http://www.mrhoney.eu/content/aboutusEN

How much does a jar of honey cost?

A tidy £14.99 for 500g, or £13.61 per lb in old money.

https://theorienthoney.co.uk/shop/

Swarm Silly Season is back again

Killer bees

I think this article has been recycled more than Thames water: Those honeybees you’re so worried about? They’re killing off wild bee species

https://grist.org/article/those-honeybees-youre-so-worried-about-theyre-killing-off-wild-bee-species/

https://www.salon.com/2019/07/07/those-honeybees-youre-so-worried-about-theyre-killing-off-wild-bee-species_partner/

Swarmery

There are so many videos Out There it's a shame to pick just one juicy morsel...

Death in Paradise

Now I'm a huge fan of the US in general ... but something seems amiss:

https://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/41532/20190621/us-beekeepers-lost-over-40-of-colonies-last-year-highest-winter-losses-ever-recorded.htm

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/07/08/us/honey-bee-colony-loss-trnd/index.html

Asian hornet

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/asian-hornet-identified-in-south-hampshire

How much does a jar of honey cost?

A cool £28/kg, or £13.08 for 1 lb

Weather swings, again

With Paris, France, sweltering in 40+C, the apiary in Wimbledon has finally made it to the low twenties.

And in other news...

Weather swings

The temp has lurched from 14C to 24C in just a couple of days, and the bees are bringing on queen cells like no tomorrow. I'm guessing that the wet weather preceding means that the flowers' nectaries are full, and the bees are going crazy. Here's that Pagden again:

Image from the very informative http://killowen.com/swarmcontrol.html

Bee Simulator

Rather obviously, I am one of the last people to discover the Bee Simulator game.

The name reminds me of Fee Waybill's remark about simulated Indian beaver fur: "They don't have beavers in India, so they have to simulate them."

Maybe that's it: I'm simulating being a beekeeper.

Rather you than me: Indian woman covers her face with hundreds of bees to raise conservation awareness

I realize I am a scaredy-cat, but you won't catch me doing this. Well, not deliberately.

If only my frames came out neatly labelled like this...

If I knew who made the photo, I'd give the credit!

Stings & Puns

I found this excellent piece on bee stings: http://basicbeekeeping.blogspot.com/2008/01/lesson-21-bee-stings.html, written by David & Sheri Burns of Long Lane Honey Bee Farms, Illinois.

And besides, there's a winning pun on the website:

Ex Machina & swarm control

I quite like this robo-beekeeper video, from Gary Hammond : https://youtu.be/BCReKLV6CB4

Gary's pretty handy with a guitar, too.

An Inspector Calls

Following a case of EFB at a near-by apiary, the Regional Bee Inspector called. He used a lateral flow device, very similar to a pregnancy test thingy, to check.... and the answer, thank goodness, was negative.

From https://www.filmbankmedia.com/films/archive/details/657-an-inspector-calls

Chambourcy Nouvelle, la Louvre et les abeilles!

Chambourcy Nouvelle! Une membre de WBKA avez spotted les abeilles á la Louvre!

https://fr.nuxe.com/protection-abeilles-nuxe-louvre

Urban beekeeping boom is harming native bees, entomologists say

Far more importantly, the Canadian councillor who worries is called Francesco Miele - or "Frank the Honey" to his beekeeping mates...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/beekeeping-montreal-motion-native-species-1.5166091

Urban beekeeping is increasingly popular in Montreal, but the city's opposition party wants to control the practice in order to make room for native bee species. (John Minchillo/Associated Press)

One Thousand and One Uses for a Hive Tool

I wonder where "patio grouting" falls on the list?

Innovation courtesy my first (and so far only) wife

Go From Incompetent To Super Effective

The title of this podcast caught my eye: Go From Incompetent To Super Effective, based on Peter Drucker's 1967 book The Effective Executive

https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-8wjrm-b1b4cf

The heart of advertising is promise, large promise.
Claiming to be 'The Definitive Guide" is quite something, let alone the assertion that he, or anyone,
knows which are the "right" things... 

That's enough swarm photos. Ed.

How beautifully convenient....

Queenery

Here's a nice diagram (if it's yours, please let me know and I will gladly add the credit)

Coutts Skyline Garden

Coutts' Executive Chef Peter Fiori was kind enough to show wife & self around the Skyline Garden. Peter has transformed the bank's roof into a productive, ingenious and bee-friendly paradise.

There's a hive up there too (but I didn't see that, in my proud tradition of incompetence.)

Photo by Marianne Majerus. I was so bowled over by Peter and his garden I forgot to take pics!

I love stories like this: "Shoppers run from huge swarm of bees outside The Range in Plymouth"

Video and hysterical over-reporting here: 

https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/news/plymouth-news/live-swarm-bees-range-plymouth-2931449

Video by Zoe Mathison

The Apiarist

Here's a nice blog: https://theapiarist.org/

The blog format doesn't do the content any favours; it would be better as a book.

Remember books? (Hyperlinks are great, but give me an Index any day.™)

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of hyperlinks, who
(a) is not the author of "The Apiarist" and
(b) looks like the brother I don't have.

Astrobees

OK, not really bees, but fun, all the same.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/48381951

Buckfast

As you might expect, this Buckfast blog is well worth the reading time: https://www.buckfast.org.uk/bee-blog

And this Guardian article is worth a look, too:
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/feb/27/buckfast-drink-with-supernatural-powers-destruction

Ten Brilliant Beekeepers' Blogs

Naturally, Incompetent Beekeeper does not feature on the list of "Ten Brilliant Beekeepers' Blogs."

https://www.waltons.co.uk/blog/10-brilliant-beekeepers-blogs

Bastards.

(And there goes my chance of being included...)

McHive

It's heartwarming that after a few million years' evolution, this is what humans do.

How much does a jar of honey cost? Quanto costa un vasetto di miele?

In a long-running theme, here's another "How much does a jar of honey cost?" post. In Italy, it's €7.50 for 500g.

Picture from a WBKA member. No names, no pack-drill.

BBKA Basic

Another excellent course morning for the BBKA Basic at WBKA. It's astonishing how little I have learned in 15 years of beekeeping, and how many bad habits I have collected.

Don’t worry, bee happy: Bees found to have emotions and moods

From New Scientist:

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2107546-dont-worry-bee-happy-bees-found-to-have-emotions-and-moods/

imageBROKER/REX/Shutterstock from the New Scientist page

Time Out

In case you missed it... At £45 a go, that's pretty good money, honey.

Spotted by a WBKA member

Swarmy Hatfield

These bees chose a pavement, of all places, to land...

From https://www.whtimes.co.uk/news/bee-swarm-on-pavement-in-hatfield-1-6051789

And here's the video: https://www.whtimes.co.uk/news/bee-swarm-on-pavement-in-hatfield-1-6051789?jwsource=cl

Imperial Purple Part II

Watching swarms walk in ... wonderful!

From a WBKA member. I wonder where the silk comes from?
(Better check the curtains. Or the bedsheets.)

Imperial Purple Swarms ... and an Ali Baba surprise!

The imperial purple runway is quite special... and then wait to see what's under the lid!

Posted by a WBKA member. How cool!

The Swarmy Lincolnite

Nice collection of swarmy pics here: https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2019/05/bee-swarms-invade-lincoln-streets/

Pics from https://thelincolnite.co.uk/

I, Beebot

How about this: Can AI help stop bee extinction? (To save you reading the article, the short answer is 'Yes.')

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/can-ai-help-stop-bee-extinction/ar-AAAYaqD?srcref=rss

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/i-robot

Egg, larva, pupa

I found this very nice chart at http://hwbka.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Bee-LifeCycle-Chart.pdf

And there's some nice blog stuff, too: https://hwbka.org.uk/just-as-you-feared-wasps-are-menacing-because-they-are-smarter-than-bees/

London Bee Corridor & the Brent Council Waggle Dance

The "London Bee Corridor" sounds too good to be true; it's certainly a snappy name. To point the bees the right way, I wonder if the Brent Councillors will indulge in a collective waggle-dance... They could sell tickets.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-48187846
and
https://www.brent.gov.uk/council-news/press-releases/pr6968/ 

Councillor Krupa Sheth (LB Brent) says the "bee corridor" will be ready by the summer

Before you start keeping bees

After keeping (and losing and killing and catching and nurturing) bees for nearly 15 years, I thought I'd have a crack at the BBKA Basic Assessment.

Pic from https://www.thespruce.com/beginners-guide-to-beekeeping-3016857 
The clue's in the name

"Bees defy the laws of physics..."

Of course, there are no laws of physics. Nature does what nature does, and we describe what nature does with "laws." But nature does not follow laws, and we don't actually know why nature does what it does. It just does. So there.

Here's a picture of Richard Feynman, lest we forget.

Picture from https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/context/top-10-richard-feynman-quotations

Linked In, Cox's Honey, and a tinge of piffle

As a good-for-nothing ne'er-do-well, I searched 'beekeeping' on Linked In...

https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/1245683612/

Turns out that https://coxshoney.com/ is looking for help, in Idaho (where the spuds come from, I believe). There's a tinge of piffle on the Cox's Honey site, e.g. "Bees defy the laws of physics..." but I'll let that pass.

Beekeeping tours in Crete

A fellow WBKA member on hols in Crete spotted this:

If I charged €20 for an apiary tour, I'd be quids in. (Does that even make sense?)

Check out the QR code on the leaflet, too. 

Bees, Cleese and Atkinson

John Cleese went to the same school as me. So there.

https://youtu.be/OGFz9gt0-Fc

World Bee Day event

Email not displaying correctly? View in your browser

Embassy of Slovenia is in partnership with Conway Hall and Bee Midtown hosting an event in celebration of World Bee Day 2019: WORLD BEE DAY COMES TO LONDON Tuesday 21 May 2019 from 6:30 pm until 8:30 pm Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL At 7pm there will be a welcoming address by the Slovenian Ambassador, Tadej Rupel, the Chief Executive of Conway Hall, Dr. Jim Walsh and a representative from Bee Midtown. Admission is free, but tickets must be booked in advance HERE

Royal Babies; I'm waiting for the call

Pic from http://www.atlanticspeakerbureau.com/nicholas-witchell/speaker

Beekeepers look after thousands of Royal Babies on a daily basis. I'm waiting for the call from Nick Witchell...

UN 'extinction report' predicts 1m species at risk

UN report here: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2019/05/nature-decline-unprecedented-report/

At the time of writing, we humans are one of around 8.7 million species on earth, which implies that more than 10% of species are threatened with extinction.

Looked at another way, 100% of species are threatened with extinction (that's how natural selection works).

In just the recent thousands of years, humans have achieved wonderful things - learned to speak, write, build pyramids, reach the moon and broadcast "The Only Way Is Essex."

At what cost?

Pic from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-48169783

Saving bees with sugar.... errmmm, really?

Pic from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-48093351

I don't really buy this story. Saving bees one at a time will be a looooong job..

Saving bees with sugar: Connecting with nature or 'a last resort'?

Bees in a bird box

A friend came across these bumbles...

Another outstanding video from Richard Noel: swarms

As spotted by a WBKA member. You can see Richard Noel's YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClFlG4yfKhR2-w9VN_r8M3w

I won't do that

Where do people find the time for this kind of thing? (And thank goodness they do!)

Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated

Pic from https://www.biography.com/writer/mark-twain

First opportunity today to check the colonies. Local temp was around 16C, and the bees were flying from all except one hive, which looked like bad news...

However, it turned out that the colonies were weaker than I guessed,and the non-flying hive particularly small. No queen cells found.

Fingers crossed for a warm May.

Guerilla Gardening

Last week I planted three Ceanothus in the track next to the apiary. Not strictly my bit of land, but ...

Pic from https://www.plantsgaloreonline.co.uk/plants/large-trellis-climbing-plants/ceanothus-thyrsiflorus-concha-trellis-climber-20-ltr-californian-lilac.html

Jericho Beekeeping

As usual, time only for Jericho Beekeeping this evening. All the colonies are going well and have enough space - but I didn't have time for a full inspection, so they could be riddled with queen cells and about to swarm.

Canadian researchers warn of 'cascading impacts' as bumblebee species decline

By the look of the photo, spearing insects with pins can't be helping too much, either...

See original story here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/bumblebees-decline-pollinators-1.5106260

Roger Burns & swarm capture

Masses of swarms being collected by WBKA members, which prompted me to search for swarm stories. Here's one from 2016 in the Daily Telegraph.

Roger Burns, of Pembrokeshire Beekeepers, said: "I got about 15 or 20 stings for my trouble. I then left the cardboard box on the roof while we waited for the last few hundred bees to leave the boot but then a gust of wind blew it off and the queen may have fled back to the boot again."

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/24/swarm-of-bees-follow-grandmothers-car-for-over-24-hours-attempti/?WT.mc_id=tmg_share_em

Beginners, apparently

Run away!

Spotted by another WBKA beekeeper: look closely at top right, and you can see a monk legging it from the bees. I sympathise (with the running, not the monkery).

Merton Abbey

Honey harvest

I wondered a little about his method of cleaning up the supers...

Beekeeping with the Flow Hive in the Netherlands at Radio Kootwijk.

Four bees found living in woman's eye

Ugh! 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/bees-eyes-woman-taiwan-tears-hospital-a8862761.html

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/10/doctors-discover-four-live-bees-feeding-on-tears-inside-womans-eye

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-47876130

Queen cells, at this time of year? Oh Yes!

Sent in by a WBKA member:

So much for spring....

It's 10C in London, and a good bit colder in SW England. Here's a shot from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47799408

BWARS and Vespa velutina

Found this site - the Bee, Wasp and Ant Recording Society, with a scrap of info about Vespa velutina:  http://www.bwars.com/Vespa_velutina

Download the information sheet here: http://www.bwars.com/sites/www.bwars.com/files/info_sheets/Vespa_velutina_information_sheet.pdf