Introduction to Honey Bees and Beekeeping Robert Kluson, Ph.D. Ag/NR Extension Agent III UF/IFAS Sarasota County Extension OUTLINE Backyard Regulations History Importance Biology Management Honey Backyard Regulations Summary • Compliance agreement signed • Follow best management practices • 15’ from property line • Six foot flyover • Fenced in yard • ¼ acre or less three hives • Special permit for parks http://www.freshfromflorida.com/content/download/33027/812312/08492_sample_be ekeeper_CA_for_EAB.pdf BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES EUROPEAN HONEY BEE COLONIES MAINTENANCE 1. This is a voluntary program designed to minimize the threat of Africanized Honey Bees (AHB) in Florida and to dilute any feral AHB populations that may become established in Florida as our gentle managed colonies are our best line of defense against AHB. 2. Beekeepers participating in this program must sign a compliance agreement with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. 3. Beekeepers will maintain a valid registration with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services/Division of Plant Industry (FDACS/DPI), and be current with any and all special inspection fees. 4. A Florida apiary may be deemed as EHB (European Honey Bee) with a minimum 10% random survey of colonies using the FABIS (Fast African Bee Identification System) and/or the computer-assisted morphometric procedure, ie. universal system for the detection of Africanized Honey Bees (AHB) (USDA-ID), or other approved methods by FDACS on a yearly basis or as requested. 5. Honey bee colony divisions or splits should be queened with production queens or queen cells from EHB breeder queens following Florida’s Best Management Practices. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in874 BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES EUROPEAN HONEY BEE COLONIES MAINTENANCE 6. Florida beekeepers are discouraged from collecting swarms that cannot be immediately re-queened from EHB queen producers. 7. Florida Beekeepers should practice good swarm prevention techniques to prevent an abundance of virgin queens and their ready mating with available AHB drones that carry the defensive trait. 8. Maintain all EHB colonies in a strong, healthy, populous condition to discourage usurpation (take over) swarms of AHB. 9. Do not allow any weak or empty colonies to exist in an Apiary, as they may be attractive to AHB swarms. 10. Recommend re-queening with European stock every six months unless using marked or clipped queens and having in possession a bill of sale from a EHB Queen Producer. 11. Immediately re-queen with a European Queen if previously installed clipped or marked queen is found missing. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in874 BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES EUROPEAN HONEY BEE COLONIES MAINTENANCE 12. Maintain one European drone source colony (250 square inches of drone comb) for every 10 colonies in order to reduce supercedure queens mating with AHB drones. 13. To protect public safety and reduce beekeeping liability do not site apiaries in proximity of tethered or confined animals, students, the elderly, general public, drivers on public roadways, or visitors where this may have a higher likelihood of occurring. 14. Treat all honey bees with respect. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in874 Evolution History • Bees’ ancestors evolved 207 to 220 million years ago • Now: 22,000 species of bees • 9 species of honeybee Honey Bees Taxonomy • Kingdom: Animalia • Subgenus Micrapis: • Phylum: Arthropoda Apis andreniformis Apis florea • Class: Insecta • Order: Hymenoptera • Subgenus Megapis: Apis dorsata • Family: Apidae • Subgenus Apis: • Subfamily: Apinae Apis cerana • Tribe: Apini Apis koschevnikovi Apis mellifera • Genus: Apis Apis nigrocincta World Distribution of HoneyBee Species Apis andreniformis Apis koschevnikovi Apis cerana Apis nigrocincta Apis dorsata Apis mellifera Apis florea http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey_bee Aphis mellifera Honey Bees • Called “Western/European Honey Bee • Originated in eastern tropical Africa and spread from there to Northern Europe and then globally • There are many subspecies that have adapted to the local geographic and climatic environments Coevolution: Pollinators & Flowering Plants 100 M Yrs BP Fossil record that insect diversity increased dramatically following the origin of the flowering plants 100 M Yrs BP (in the Cretaceous period). Benefits to the Plants. Benefits to the Pollinators. • Benefits – Pollen • rich food source – Nectar • average ~ 40% sugar Bee Ophrys – – No benefit? - diagram Trickery from Charles • pseudocopulation Darwin www.biol.wwu.edu/.../Coevolution/ Human History of Honey Bees • Ancient times: cave paintings of honey gathering • Hunter-gatherers today (or at least during the late 1900s) • !Kung: a “sacramental adventure” • Mbuti: hunting season as Mesolithic rock painting showing honey collection from a wild nest at Valencia, a time of festivity and Spain magic http://www.mdbee.com/articles/cavepainting.html Cultural History of Honey Bees SACRED BEES Honey bees and honey are present in the creation myths, cosmologies and sacred places of many diverse ancient cultures. Honey bees were considered a symbol of the soul, of death and of rebirth The hive of honey bees symbolized a functional society. Honey was regarded as a magical, sacred substance. Honey has had many uses: foods and beverages heal wounds and cure diseases placed in tombs and used for embalming http://beehaven.heroku.com/history-of-bee-worship SACRED BEES In the mythology of ancient Greece the Omphalos was the beehive or stone at the center of reality. It served as the portal to their gods. Omphalos stones were erected in several areas surrounding the Mediterranean Sea; the most famous of those was at the oracle in Delphi. Persephone with the Omphalos (i.e., Beehive) on her head at the Eleusis Museum in Athens http://sacredpathofthebee.tumblr.com/ SACRED BEES Ancient bee goddesses included Aprodite, Artemis, Cybele, Demeter, Persephone, and Neith. The ancient priestesses of the Bee Goddesses were known as the Melissaes in Greek and the Deborahs in Hebrew. The Melissae represent the sacred feminine tradition. Jewelry depicting a bee goddess, Greek c. 700 BCE http://sacredpathofthebee.tumblr.com/ SACRED BEES Mayan Bee God Mok Chi Mayan Bee god Ah Muzen Cab The ancient Maya revered honey for its medicinal and ritualistic uses. In contrast, their honeybee species called “stingless bees”,or simply meliponines, is in the tribe Meliponini of family Apidae Unlike other eusocial bees, they do not sting but will defend by biting if their nest is disturbed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stingless_bee SACRED BEES Scenes from Slovenia Today Beeshed with small front boards over the gullet with Slovenian Melissae different little pictures from long history of depicting Saints, people beekeeping. and animals and especially from everyday life. http://www.thezaurus.com/gallery/112 Agriculture Importance Importance of Pollination • More than 75% of flowering plants depend on animal pollinators • In U.S., over 100 crop plants depend on animal pollinators (value >$15 Billion) • Most natural ecosystems would collapse without animal pollinators • Some plants are endangered because of diminished pollination 22 Pollination Impacts • About 130 US crops are pollinated by bees • List of crops that benefit but do not require bee visitation http://gears.tucson.ars.a g.gov/beeclass/Pollinatio n.pdf 1 23 Pollination Impacts • List of crops that require bee visitation http://gears.tucson.ars.ag.gov/beeclass/Pollination.pdf 1 24 • List of crops that require bee visitation Pollination Impacts 25 The Honey Bee Colony – Caste Development and Differentiation Bee honey is composed of fructose, We know that bees have glucose, and water, in varying been producing honey as proportions. It also contains several they do today for at least enzymes and oils. The color and 150 million years. Bees flavor depend on the age of the produce honey as food honey and on the source of the stores for the hive during nectar. the long months of winter when flowers aren't blooming and therefore little or no nectar is available to them. Honey bees are herbivores; they eat nectar and honey. The Honey Bee Colony – Caste Development and Differentiation The queen reigns over the • At the individual level, nest, surrounded by honey bees have not attendants and fed the rich one but three types of food she requires to colony members: perform her few but crucial queens, drones and workers, each with tasks in the colony. The their own queen produces powerful specializations and pheromones, chemical place in honey bee signals to recipient workers society. which control many of their behaviors and provide part of the 'social glue' which holds honey bee life together. The Honey Bee Colony – Caste Development and Differentiation • The queen is the only sexually developed female in the hive. She is the largest bee in the colony. • A two-day-old larva is selected by the workers to be reared as the queen. She will emerge from her cell 11 days later to mate in flight with approximately 18 drone (male) bees. During this mating, she receives several million sperm cells, which last her entire life span of nearly two years. • The queen starts to lay eggs about 10 days after mating. A productive queen can lay 3,000 eggs in a single day. Bee! This is a baby bee hatching. She must chew the cap off her cell to hatch. Bee House Chores Nurse bees feed the baby larvae and vibrate their wing muscles to keep them warm New baby larvae and the queen eat Royal Jelly which the bees make