mites in drone brood

caught redhanded! varroa mites preferentially shack up with drone larvae, as their incubation period is slightly longer than worker bees; one varroa management technique is to destroy drone brood right after it is capped, when it is likely to contain the maximum number of mites.

enemies of the bees

found a wasp nest too close to the hives.

photos by jonathan dy

late night snack

getting stuffed on larva

photo by jonathan dy

Devon Maintaining

photos by jonathan dy

here, princess

a new queen cell -- empty, just the way we like them ;)

I destroy these when I find them; if the queen lays inside, we could have a swarm on our hands.

mites

saw some varroa mites hanging out on top of a few bees today. If they get out of hand they can devastate a hive. the two circled mites (looks like a small red dot) are adult mites...they suck the bees "blood" and leave open wounds, leading to infection. many treatment options, none 100% effective. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varroa_destructor )

healthy as can bee

all six of these hives are already stronger than they were before winter! there are already lots of bees even in the third box. I think it's going to be a good honey year ~

PARTY TIME

yeea ~

Busy from Jonathan Dy on Vimeo.

the boys are back in town

over the last few days I've noticed an increase in males -- must be mating season! gonna have to keep a close eye on the hives, how much space they have, and watch out for queen cells!

The Keepers

photos by Jonathan Dy

pollen from the cold

neither rain nor snow will stop the pollen train...these girls have been very happy with our july-like february, and are now wondering wtf -- maybe it's not summer yet after all!



photo by jonothan dy.