nature notes II

[wigginhall]

I've never heard of that about horses and bees.  Just checked, it is certainly part of the lore about keeping bees, that they don't like horses, and will attack them, and even kill them.   Recently, there has been strange bee behaviour because they became short of drinking water, and visited strange ponds and so on, so bee-keepers are advised to provide plenty of water for them, e.g. a small pond. 

Yes, good news about the pesticides.

They seem to have quite small nests, up to 50 bees in it.

In other news, not many wasps around at the moment, apparently they were decimated by bad winters and summers.  Bad news for gardeners, actually.

In other news, more eagles seen in Norfolk, Gordon Bennett.

[SweetPea]

Yes, I was thinking, I'm not sure it's going to be that easy for my sis and bro-in-law to tackle the problem.

Exciting news about the eagles in Norfolk!

[wigginhall]

Advice for bee-keepers seems to be to keep them at least a field's distance from horses; but with bumble bees, you can't do that.  Probably they often turn up in the same field.  But probably as long as they have drinking water, they are OK.  So droughts could be a problem, and bee-keepers should have ponds, or containers full of water, which are replenished frequently.

There are hives on my allotment, and it's nice to see the honey bees on all the flowers. 

[SweetPea]

As far as I know, this is the first time they have found a bees nest at the small holding. But they have four fields which accommodate five Dexter cattle and two horses, so I guess there may have to be some shuffling about.

It is interesting where the bees have come from though. There are three surrounding properties in the area, so perhaps someone is a bee-keeper. There are plenty of water troughs in the fields for the animals...... maybe that was part of the attraction.

[wigginhall]

Yes, but bee-keepers keep honey bees, not bumble bees, which are completely wild.  They are quite different, and the nest of the bumbles is tiny compared with the honey bee, maybe 50 bees, whereas a hive might have 30, 000 bees!

So a bee nesting in the ground is not a honey bee, which is not wild in the UK.

Well, correction to that, there are wild colonies of honey bee, which maybe were once held by a keeper, so I don't know if they are truly wild or feral. 

Anyway, they look very different! 

PS. this is complicated!  There are also mining bees, mason bees, etc. which look a bit like honey bees. 

[SweetPea]

Yes, of course, that's true. These bees were much smaller than the usual bumble bee, almost like baby bumbles - perhaps they were.

Just seen your edited post and yes, the bees just didn't look like your regular bumble bee.
Tiny, two black stripes with a greyish yellowy look to them.

The mystery deepens!

 

[Diarthrognathus Josteyn Ward]

A fair of long-tailed tits...

[cyberman]

Yes, of course, that's true. These bees were much smaller than the usual bumble bee, almost like baby bumbles - perhaps they were.

Just seen your edited post and yes, the bees just didn't look like your regular bumble bee.
Tiny, two black stripes with a greyish yellowy look to them.

The mystery deepens!

 

They sound like honey bees to me. I think there must be a bee keeper in the area. It could be that a commercial keeper has left some hives on an nearby farm for a while, to aid pollenation.

[SweetPea]

A fair of long-tailed tits...

Eh, watchit, mister!

[SweetPea]

Yes, of course, that's true. These bees were much smaller than the usual bumble bee, almost like baby bumbles - perhaps they were.

Just seen your edited post and yes, the bees just didn't look like your regular bumble bee.
Tiny, two black stripes with a greyish yellowy look to them.

The mystery deepens!

 

They sound like honey bees to me. I think there must be a bee keeper in the area. It could be that a commercial keeper has left some hives on an nearby farm for a while, to aid pollenation.

Cybers, well, this is why it's a bit of a mystery. I think they have to be bumbles 'cos their bums are rounded.   It's just their colour scheme doesn't seem quite right. I've googled and found it still quite hard to identify anything.

Anyway, next time, I'll take my camera and try and upload to Flicker, so we can study them!

[Keturah]

Every year my mum's paths are infested with masonry bees.  They are very docile and when they enter the house she just picks them up in her fingers and puts them back outside.  We've tried to fill in all the cracks in her paths but each year they return to make a home.  They are like tiny bumbles.

[wigginhall]

I lived in a house in Berkhamsted, where every year the front door key-hole had a nest in it, presumably by a carpenter bee?  We put notices up warning people, but of course, didn't kill it. 

[Enki]

For anyone interested, there's an Horizon programme on  BBC 2 tonight at 9pm entitled ' What's Killing our Bees?'

[Gonnagle]

Dear Antithesis,

Thank you, interesting programme, first thing and probably the most obvious, more Bee friendly plants next  year

And the man ended with "perhaps it is us that are destroying the Bee's" no perhaps about it, intensive farming

Gonnagle.

[SweetPea]

Overall, I thought this an excellent programme. Not being a great fan of Bill, I thought his presentation here very good, am sure it was because of his interest and fondness for bees.

It seems there is, as was thought, a combination of reasons for the plight of the humble bee, but I'm still against the use of neonicotinoids.

That was very interesting, the find that urban bees were flourishing..... sems even amongst any pollution in the atmosphere. They are avoiding any pesticides although not the bad long winters.

[Enki]

Overall, I thought this an excellent programme. Not being a great fan of Bill, I thought his presentation here very good, am sure it was because of his interest and fondness for bees.

It seems there is, as was thought, a combination of reasons for the plight of the humble bee, but I'm still against the use of neonicotinoids.

That was very interesting, the find that urban bees were flourishing..... sems even amongst any pollution in the atmosphere. They are avoiding any pesticides although not the bad long winters.

Yes, I thought it was a well balanced programme also. Obviously there's so much still to be understood. After living through the dire effects of DDT on our birdlife in particular, I also support the European two year ban on neonicotinoids.
Interesting comments in the programme associated with genetically modifying plants so that such pesticides are not needed. Bound to be contentious, of course.

[wigginhall]

Very good programme, which explained a very complex subject. 

The urban bees were fascinating - in Paris, they produce twice the honey of rural ones.  Wow.

In Norfolk I am surrounded by these arable deserts, with one crop stretching for a mile, and little for bees and butterflies to feed on.  But our garden gets lots of both, so you can make a difference.  Grow flowers - e.g. buddleia, cotoneaster, herbs, ceanothus.  Beware some hybrid plants, which have no pollen or nectar.

[wigginhall]

Yeah, we have over a 100 bumble-bees in our allotment; also various butterflies, including the gatekeeper, and some skippers, and speckled woods.  No peacocks or red admirals yet, but August is a good time. 

[OH MY WORLD!]

Why I love my Alberta

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2013/08/08/calgary-grizzly-bear-video-dancing-alberta.html

[Rhiannon]

Went to our local EH property yesterday, place was swarming with bees and butterflies, even the plants for sale. We had a bumble bee nest in the ivy on our wild cherry, it is deserted now which seems early, but no-one has disturbed it so I have to assume they've done their thing for this year.

The fields opposite have oil seed rape  on them this year, but  the ditches are full of willowherb and meadowsweet, and the field margins have what appears to be wild oat growing in them, alongside hogweed, mayweed and even poppies. The result is that our walks are full of bug spotting opportunities. I know most of the farmers round here but these fields are leased by a chap from t'other village, and I'd love to meet him and ask if he has deliberately tried to attract wildlife.

Lots of skylarks, too,  but no hares. 

[Keturah]

It's a shame we can't post pics on here because I have a flower in my garden that I'd like to identify - only because I'd like to buy more of it.   It's tall (probably standing about 4' high) with a single spike of 'fluffy' purple flower - the flower head itself is similar in shape to a red hot poker but it's a lot longer and narrower, maybe about 18".  The bumble bees LOVE it - it really is bumble bee party central.

[Rhiannon]

Liatris spicata aka gay feather?

[Keturah]

Liatris spicata aka gay feather?

HURRAH!!  Thanks Rhi.

That's the one.   I must get more, the bumble bees are so entertaining to watch on it.   Gayfeather - that's easy to remember.

[OH MY WORLD!]

I have a flock of Spruce Grouse visiting my back yard twice a day. Dad and mom with 16 baby chicks. So cute.

http://www.avianweb.com/sharptailedgrouse.html

[RobM]

I have a flock of Spruce Grouse visiting my back yard twice a day. Dad and mom with 16 baby chicks. So cute.

I've seen Spruce Grouse on visits to Canada - nice "back yard" bird.