8/7/2019 Beemail Feb 2011

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No 27, February 2011 Send your news to: beemail@bee-craft.com Editor: Chris Richmond

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...and out of the strong came forth sweetness’. The words of Samson’sriddle have long been familiar as the motto on tins of Lyle’s GoldenSyrup, accompanying the logo of bees issuing from a lion’s corpse.

Now some erudite honey bees have taken the biblical tale to heart,setting up home in the wall of St John’s College, Oxford, and using themouth of this lion mask as a very grand hive entrance.

‘Out of the eater came forth meat...

Asian honey bees invade AustraliaALREADY struggling to cope withfloods and fires, Australian beekeepersnow face a new threat – an invasionof Asian honey bees.

The bees, dubbed ‘cane toads with wings’by locals, originated in Indonesia but havehitched rides on shipping, spreading throughPapua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and

Torres Strait and first arrived in Australia on ayacht that docked in Cairns in 2007.

Since then, the bees (Apis cerana ) havespread inland as far as Innisfail, about 50miles (83 km) south. They are more prolificthan European honey bees (Apis mellifera ),swarming up to five times each year, andcompete for forage and hive space, but arenot effective honey producers. Beekeepers inQueensland fear the interlopers could threaten

the existing bee population, saying they areaggressive, rob hives and may even introduceVarroa destructor mites to Australia.

With the Australian bee industry worth

about A$4 billion (£2.47 bn) per annum, theAustralian government funded a A$3 millioneradication programme, which has alreadydealt with 340 swarms since the initial colonyarrived, but has now seemingly accepteddefeat, after the Asian Honeybee NationalManagement Group declared: ‘It is no longertechnically feasible to achieve eradication’.

Outraged beekeepers and state authoritiesin Queensland (the only state with Asianhoney bees) want to continue the eradicationprogramme and are campaigning for moreaction to solve the problem.

They already have the support of beekeepersand farming associations nationwide and are

urging Aussies to support their cause bywriting to politicians, including AgricultureMinister Joe Lugwig.

On Wednesday, 2 March, the campaignershave organised a Honey Breakfast andprotest march to the parliament in Canberra.

They are demanding the government:● Allocate A$10 million (£6.17 million) overthe next two years to eradicate the Asian beein Australia.● Implement the recommendations of the2008 More than Honey report by allocating anadditional A$50m annually to maintain healthybee populations to secure pollination services.● Provide funding for the establishment andoperation of the Co-operative ResearchCentre for Bee Research and Food Security.

WASHINGTON State beekeeperCorky Luster’s determination to keep beesthriving in America has put him in line for apossible $20,000 prize.

Corky, based in Ballard, near Seattle, is afinalist in the AMD Visionary of the Year awards,sponsored by Advanced Micro Devices Inc.His scheme is similar to the British Beekeepers’Association’s Adopt-a-Beehive programme –and, indeed, the working practices of manybeekeepers – in that it encourages landowners

to provide space for hives, tended by Corky,in exchange for a share of the honey.So far, he has 60 hives dotted around

Ballard and he is hoping the prize will helphim expand the programme, take on internsand teach others the art of beekeeping.

Beekeepers to marchon capital this week

Brush up on hygieneScientists at the University of Sussexhave already made a name for themselveswith their research into honey bee health,breeding and the effects of Colony CollapseDisorder (CCD), with the Laboratory ofApiculture and Social Insects (LASI)featuring in the BBC documentary Who Killed the Honey Bee? 

Now the LASI is opening its doors toexperienced beekeepers interested in queenrearing and breeding with a workshop atthe unit’s base in Falmer, Brighton.

The workshop will be taught by ProfessorFrancis Ratnieks, Dr Karin Alton, NormanCarreck and Gianluigi Bigio and willdemonstrate the technique of freeze-killedbrood bioassay to determine the mosthygienic colonies, which can then be usedin bee breeding and queen rearing.

Currently, it is planned to run theafternoon workshop twice – on Saturday21 May and Monday 23 May.

The course is free but is limited to 25places per session so you need to registerwith Dr Alton on 01273 872587 or emailKarin.Alton@sussex.ac.uk .

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‘Rent-a-Hive’ planup for award

BEEKEEPERS should soon have a new

weapon in their armoury against Varroa destructor parasitic mites after Canadian firmNOD Apiary Products obtained US federalregistration for its Mite-Away Quick Strips.

The strips are impregnated with formicacid, an active component in bee/ant stings.

Formic acid is already used to combatvarroa, and is said to be particularly effectiveagainst the soft-shelled male mites which lurkinside sealed cells, but requires careful useas it is volatile in high temperatures and ispotentially lethal to bees and humans.

NOD, which already markets Mite-Awayformic acid pads, claim the new gel strips aremore stable and may be used in temperaturesup to 93ºF (34ºC). The treatment period isseven days and can be implemented during a

honey flow. NOD claims up to 95% mite kill.There is currently no date set for QuickStrips to go on sale in the UK, but NOD saysthe product will be gradually available overthe next few months as production ramps upand pesticide registrations are obtained.

Bees get new stripto tackle varroa