Spring is just around the corner and this beekeeper is starting to get buzz-sy! A user on Imgur, that goes by Simplethings1, gave some insight into what beekeeping is like and some interesting facts about bees! Check out his user page for more engaging beekeeping information!
"Keep in mind that a vivid hive, like this one, can easily starve in March as bees fly, won't find enough nectar and/or pollen and will consume what's IN the hive. A hive can collapse under certain circumstances and that is why a beekeeper should look after the ladies. I decided to give them a bit of a snack, hence 1.5 kg of sugar on top of each hive. If they can eat, they are happy and that is what we strive for, right? Now let's see how we feed a hive...
First of all, I use two different kinds of hives. These hives are IN a house, allowing me to work with them even if it rains."
"Here we go. A fox has chosen to live under my beehouse. He made a second entrance on the opposite side of the house, so I decided to close this one but leave the other untouched so the pal gets shelter. Is a fox a problem for a beekeeper? Yes, if he gets into a hive, he'd probably be in heaven, but the bees would take care of him... So people have cats n dogs, I have a Fox now. I think I'll call him Frank. Welcome my pal, enjoy your stay."
"The mark on the scotch tape indicates how much they have eaten. About 2 kg in 4 days. These bees are one fire. Time to take a closer look on the other side of the hive, where they fly."
"Actually, did you know that every bee has a job to do in its life. These bees here are mature and have the honour to go and collect. You will never see young bees collecting, they have a different task to fulfill in the hive."
Watch that single bee that approaches 3 times and then leaves. This bee wanted to get in but could not smell the "odor" of her population. Entering a wrong hive could mean death, as other bees might attack her.
"Pretty easy. Act slowly, open the to, turn the cover, watch the bees and put the food on it. See that one bee turning her butt towards me and flapping her wings?
This bee is doing 2 things. 1 She threatens me (makes noise) and she makes sure that the odor of the hive gets spread so that flying bees could identify "their" hive."
"Voila, all bees are happy. This particular bee asked me if I could tell you guys that she loves humans and that you don't have to be afraid of them. They don't sting. So I said that I'll do that and she took off."
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