Blog – bees, beekeeping & other sticky subjects
ApiShield Asian hornet trap – video
Dr Max Watkins, Technical Director of Vita, talks about ApiShield, the Asian hornet trap.
Full news release here.
ApiShield Hornet Trap
The invasion of the Asian Hornet
Video of Dr Max Watkins, Technical Director of Vita (Europe) Ltd, talking about the spread Asian hornet and the threat it poses to honeybees in a growing number of countries in Europe. Watch out for news about the Asian hornet trap tomorrow.
Asian hornet spread 2013
Asian hornet adapts in Galicia?
The Asian Hornet, first seen in in Galicia in NW Spain in 2012, now appears to be active in winter, according to this report in Vida Apicola.
Asian Hornet. Picture courtesy: C Villemant, A Perrard, Q Rome, O Gargominy, J Hazaire, E Darrouzet & A Rortais.
Winter activity has not been reported elsewhere in Europe and is puzzling local beekeepers. It is hornets near the Galician coast that seem to be active — probably because of the milder climate.
As yet bee colonies in Galicia are not under constant attack– but the hornet is taking a toll in Northern Portugal.
The local beekeeping associations are asking beekeepers not to destroy hornet nests unless they are certain they are Asian hornets. By destroying native hornet nests by nistake they may make the spread of the Asian hornet easier.
Forecasts suggest that the Asian Hornet, which was first observed in Spain on the French border in 2010, will have colonised all of Iberia by 2024.
Benefits of using Vita Feed Gold
Vita has discovered that Vita Feed Gold has a very beneficial effect in reducing spores of Nosema ceranae, an increasingly important disease of honeybees. Dr Max Watkins, Technical Director of Vita (Europe) Ltd, explains on video.
More information on Vita Feed Gold and how to use it here and information on Nosema here.
Raring to go!
Here’s a welcome sight. This little nucleus is taking full advantage of the January sun right now. It’s only 10C, but it’s the best day they have seen for some time. Some snowdrops and hazel are out — but that’s about all the forage that is available here and now in southern England.
They were of course treated for varroa last autumn (with Apiguard) and they look set for a healthy spring — we hope!
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Turlough, Vita’s Guest Beekeeper Blogger