The double-whammy

Posted by Beekeeper on Nov 7, 2010 in Asian Hornets, Hive problems | 8 comments

This is the photo that ruined my weekend – the sort of sight that strikes fear into any beekeepers heart.

Not only are the bees being picked off as they leave or return to the hive by the huge Asian hornets and torn limb from limb, but this one also has a varroa mite – you can see the mite falling off the bee (the brown blob between the bee’s legs) as the hornet gets to work.

New hatch – natural selection at work

Posted by Jon on Jun 10, 2010 in Bee behaviour, Beekeeping | 0 comments

A new hatch arrived yesterday in one of our largest colonies – the air was alive with bees and natural selection was in full flow. We love watching our bees but it has become evident that they can be very ruthless – whilst each bee will lose its life trying to protect the colony in a true show of altruism, they also expect every other bee to do the same.