Professor David Evans is a virologist studying the biology of single stranded positive sense RNA viruses, including poliovirus, hepatitis C virus and deformed wing virus of honeybees. He has a fascinating, practical beekeeping blog, https://www.theapiarist.org/
- A pick'n'mix collection of swarm-related information this week. The planning and equipment needed for swarm control, and hiving bivouacked swarms. Some preliminary results on absconding swarms and re-hiving distances, and another over-confident prediction of when swarming will start.
- Early hive inspections — and why you shouldn't — some thoughts on variable spring weather and progress in predicting swarming, and how the accuracy of the waggle dance varies depending on who is watching.
- Colonies are highly selective when choosing larvae to rear queen. Standard (grafting-based) queen rearing methods are not. In this post I briefly discuss the science of larval selection, and then present two easy practical methods that take advantage of our current understanding of the process.
- Do wet winters kill bees? Winter losses in '25/'26 appear to be unusually high. Inevitably, the miserable winter rain is blamed. However, I suspect the problem may be due to the earlier drought, a shortage of pollen, and the timing of winter bee production.
- The financial outlay you need to make when starting beekeeping is less than the commitment the catalogues imply you should make. Buy wisely with compatibility and longevity in mind, but also invest in a couple of luxuries that will make your beekeeping easier.
- Colonies can starve in early spring. It takes just a few days of adverse weather for colonies to run out of stores. This week I discuss preventing starvation in managed colonies, together with some observations on the survival of, and finding, overwintered free-living bees.
- Don't believe everything you read in the catalogues. It's expensive to start beekeeping, so buy little, and buy wisely. The equipment should last — and be usable — for decades, so aim to make your beekeeping easier now, and in the future.
- Identifying areas with endemic foulbroods, and the adjacent regions at risk from natural spillover through swarming. What choices are there in dealing with swarms originating from infected areas, including the options available for euthanising them?
- Just because they contain an identical active ingredient don't assume they are equivalent. There are differences in the approved modes and frequency of administration, dosage, and shelf life … and significant differences in value for money (particularly for hobbyists).
- Swarms may carry pests and pathogens. Mites are easily managed, but the notifiable foulbrood diseases are not. It is important to consider the risks, based upon swarm behaviour and the known distribution of disease locally. Is it a risk worth taking, and if not, what should be done with the swarm?