Can’t work this out. Think it’s a promo for a film though and certainly not real honeybees.
Can’t work this out. Think it’s a promo for a film though and certainly not real honeybees.
Earlier on in the blog we looked at the contents of a mud wasp nest. Here is another wasp that uses a large tarantula as a host for its eggs in an underground nest. Quite gruesome but it’s difficult not to be in awe of the wasp’s tenacity.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqjP3-6prwM
Where do beekeepers get their bees from ? Well, some will have a system whereby they farm and split their existing hives, details of which we can discuss at a later date. A lot of beekeepers though, have no option but to ship in swarms of bees from other states or countries to replenish bees that have been lost over a long cold winter where many hives have perished. Added to this , of course, is the ever present threat of bee diseases.
Packaged bees can come from Western Australia and quite often these are sent to Canada and Northern USA. These bees can be housed quite simply with a well prepared hive and in no time at all they will be building up their numbers for a busy spring and summer. This video gives an idea of what’s involved.
This is another in the series of 1930’s beekeeping. No audio but the vision is sufficient to make out the whys and wherefores. What is noticeable is the care and attention that the beekeepers provide both for their hives and for the bees. Perhaps this is what is missing in our commercial striving for high volumes in production. Some have said that C.C.D. (Colony Collapse Disorder ) may be related to the stressing of the bees by our intense farming of hives. It’s an interesting point. Nevertheless, any beekeeper should enjoy watching this film from days gone by.
Here’s an interesting archive from another beekeeping blog. It concerns beekeeping practices from the 1930’s and although it is silent footage, the vision allows for clear identification of the methods and equipment in use http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7F5u7Uqt1U&feature=player_embedded
These people really care about saving and preserving healthy bees that may otherwise be destroyed if the fallen tree has to be removed. It takes time and effort and is done for the love of the bees rather than for any monetary gain.