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Bumble bee mites
I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? Janet |
Bumble bee mites
Nice to see the cotoneaster horizontalis round here absolutely smothered
in bees at the moment. I guess the tight little flowers are more resilient than most? Seems an awful lot of work for a small return though |
Bumble bee mites
On Wednesday, 16 May 2012 15:34:12 UTC+1, stuart noble wrote:
Nice to see the cotoneaster horizontalis round here absolutely smothered in bees at the moment. I guess the tight little flowers are more resilient than most? Seems an awful lot of work for a small return though They're obviously very attractive, the bees seem to try and force their way in even before they're properly open. Rod |
Bumble bee mites
On May 16, 12:37*am, Janet wrote:
* I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. * *Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? * *Janet Now if it had been a Welsh bumble bee then it would have had webed feet and waterwings. |
Bumble bee mites
In article 8abab327-0113-4b4d-ada0-
, says... On May 16, 12:37*am, Janet wrote: * I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. * *Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? * *Janet Now if it had been a Welsh bumble bee then it would have had webed feet and waterwings. I can tell you it wasn't much of a swimmer. Janet. |
Bumble bee mites
"Chris Hogg" wrote in message ... On Wed, 16 May 2012 00:37:13 +0100, Janet wrote: I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? Janet They're not varroa, and yes they get different mites. The following is a quote from http://www.bumblebeeconservation.org.uk/ "At least 15 genera of mites are associated with bumblebees. The most familiar of these are mites of the genus Parasitellus which are very often to be seen attached to the bodies of adult bumblebees, particularly queens. These mites are only ever found in close association with bumblebees. However, they do not feed directly upon bumblebees, but are phoretic, using the adult bees for transport between nests. This is a common phenomenon; mites have poor locomotory abilities, but with their small size they can easily attach themselves to larger organisms and so gain a free ride. Parasitellus species are thought to feed upon wax, pollen, and other small arthropods that are found in bumblebee nests. Only the deutonymph stage is phoretic, colonising new nests by transferring from workers to flowers, and then awaiting the arrival of another worker. The prevalence of Parasitellus spp. is generally high - up to 80% of queens are affected. With this level of prevalence at the beginning of the season, it is not surprising that the vast majority of bumblebee nests become infested by the end of their growth. Because these mites do not feed upon the bees themselves, it is debatable whether they have a negative impact. However, infestation levels can be high. Up to 165 mite have been found on a single. It seems inevitable that loads of this magnitude must hamper a queen's ability to fly, and so her ability to find food, a mate and a hibernation site. Try to help these queens by brushing off the mites." I'm just trying to visualise a bumble bee holding still whilst you set to with a nit comb. Nope - can't see it. -- No plan survives contact with the enemy. [Not even bunny] Helmuth von Moltke the Elder (\__/) (='.'=) (")_(") |
Bumble bee mites
"Dave Hill" wrote in message ... On May 16, 12:37 am, Janet wrote: I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? Janet Now if it had been a Welsh bumble bee then it would have had webed feet and waterwing _____ to be serious, if you see a bumble bee seemingly dying on the ground, all she needs is a little bit of honey to get her about again. So get your bumble bee carefully, and put her on to a flat surface, use a matchstick to put a drop of honey near her. Very soon you will see her feeding tube come out and drink it and then she will fly away within 5 minutes. I've done it often, I've never been stung, and it works every time. They just get exhausted sometimes. It's hard work if the weather is like it is and even if it isn't. Just giving them that drop of honey is like magic if you see a bumble bee seemingly dying on the ground. It's all they need. Tina reet, all |
Bumble bee mites
In article ,
says... "Chris Hogg" wrote in message ... On Wed, 16 May 2012 00:37:13 +0100, Janet wrote: I found a large sodden bumble bee struggling in the pond, fished it out and put it in the sun to dry off. As it dried it kept wiping itself with its middle legs; then I realised it was trying in vain to rub off small live mites; it had a dozen or more crawling around on its back. Are these varroa? Or do bumble bees get different mites? Janet They're not varroa, and yes they get different mites. The following is a quote from http://www.bumblebeeconservation.org.uk/ "At least 15 genera of mites are associated with bumblebees. The most familiar of these are mites of the genus Parasitellus which are very often to be seen attached to the bodies of adult bumblebees, particularly queens. These mites are only ever found in close association with bumblebees. However, they do not feed directly upon bumblebees, but are phoretic, using the adult bees for transport between nests. This is a common phenomenon; mites have poor locomotory abilities, but with their small size they can easily attach themselves to larger organisms and so gain a free ride. Parasitellus species are thought to feed upon wax, pollen, and other small arthropods that are found in bumblebee nests. Only the deutonymph stage is phoretic, colonising new nests by transferring from workers to flowers, and then awaiting the arrival of another worker. The prevalence of Parasitellus spp. is generally high - up to 80% of queens are affected. With this level of prevalence at the beginning of the season, it is not surprising that the vast majority of bumblebee nests become infested by the end of their growth. Because these mites do not feed upon the bees themselves, it is debatable whether they have a negative impact. However, infestation levels can be high. Up to 165 mite have been found on a single. It seems inevitable that loads of this magnitude must hamper a queen's ability to fly, and so her ability to find food, a mate and a hibernation site. Try to help these queens by brushing off the mites." I'm just trying to visualise a bumble bee holding still whilst you set to with a nit comb. Well, I tried to flick mites off the wet bee with a dry grass stalk; the bee was not amused and the mites were too firmly attached. Janet |
Bumble bee mites
Christina Websell wrote:
to be serious, if you see a bumble bee seemingly dying on the ground, all she needs is a little bit of honey to get her about again. Sugar-water would probably work just as well, I'm guessing, since that appears to be what Nick is feeding his bees atm. Having said that, there also appear to be a lot of very dead bees around the place atm, so perhaps I shouldn't pass on Nick observations at all. |
Bumble bee mites
My neighbour says they've been told to put icing sugar on bees with
mites as they dance vigorously to get the sugar off and dislodge the mites too. -- http://www.voucherfreebies.co.uk |
Bumble bee mites
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Bumble bee mites
Chris Hogg wrote:
Sugar-water would probably work just as well, I'm guessing, since that appears to be what Nick is feeding his bees atm. Feeding honey-bees is normally done in the Autumn. If he's having to feed now, it suggests things are a bit desperate vis-a-vis nectar flow! It's a bit more complicated than that right now. Apparently there is a bit of a problem atm all over the country with bees dropping dead, presumably due to the hot-then-cold-then-wet-then-cold weather we have been having. :-( |
Bumble bee mites
Sacha wrote:
Sugar-water would probably work just as well, I'm guessing, since that appears to be what Nick is feeding his bees atm. Having said that, there also appear to be a lot of very dead bees around the place atm, so perhaps I shouldn't pass on Nick observations at all. Have they not been out foraging? I know it's been cold and wet so presumably that's why he's having to feed them? Are the frames not filling up well? I'm not the one to ask, I try not to get involved. But I believe the frames /are/ filling up well, and often too well. It wasn't the hives he was having to feed, it was the 2000 bees in the bathroom. Just .. don't ask, it's a very sore (so to speak - fortunately not literally!) topic right now. |
Bumble bee mites
wrote in message ... Sacha wrote: Sugar-water would probably work just as well. No, it does not. If you want to get a almost dying bumble be to up give her honey to lick. |
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