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Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 11:57 am Post subject: Prepare to be stung.

I've just read an article that suggests that our native black bee just might be the answer to the collapse in our honey bee population.

This is based on the theory that the old black honey bee is more hairy and could be better equiped to face the harsher extremes of climate, which is thought ,maybe one of the causes of the population crash.
Currently bees descended from Southern European imported bees make up the majority of the population living in the UKs beehives.

One of the drawbacks of this solution, is that it tends to be more aggressive and that beekeepers tend not to like it for this reason.

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 12:47 pm Post subject:

IMO it's the size rather than the strain & the ambient temp has nothing to do with it as a colony can regulate hive temps comfortably when the exterior temps range from -10c to the high30s regardless of geographical origin.
The native bee tends to be smaller & it's been proven varroa mites don't like laying eggs in small cells. Link.
I posted this a while back Another link
Which is great for the Welsh apiarists.
The rest of us will have to breed our own!

Vanessa

Joined: 08 May 2006
Posts: 8324

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 1:21 pm Post subject:
How bizarre. There's a small, black bee that's native to the Limousin area of France, too! Aggressive (compared with other bees), but makes "mighty fine honey" according to the locals. Sadly, its numbers are in decline here.

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 5:58 pm Post subject:

vanessa wrote:

How bizarre. There's a small, black bee that's native to the Limousin area of France, too! Aggressive (compared with other bees), but makes "mighty fine honey" according to the locals. Sadly, its numbers are in decline here.

Not really.
The small black (or dark to be precise) bees are the original type of apis melifera before beekeepers 'improved' the species.
You can find strains of small blacks all over the world.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 6:06 pm Post subject:
One of our colonies is black. It's true about them being more aggressive

Vanessa

Joined: 08 May 2006
Posts: 8324

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 6:46 pm Post subject:

Tavascarow wrote:

vanessa wrote:

Not really.
The small black (or dark to be precise) bees are the original type of apis melifera before beekeepers 'improved' the species.
You can find strains of small blacks all over the world.

Wow, thanks ... you learn something new every day

ksia

Joined: 17 May 2006
Posts: 2320
Location: Mayenne, France

Posted: Mon May 18, 09 6:56 pm Post subject:
Breeding program for these bees here in Mayenne.

beean

Joined: 04 Jun 2009
Posts: 254

Posted: Thu Jun 04, 09 12:54 pm Post subject:

I've just joined the forum, but have lurked a while....

However, I have very dark/black bees and they are like teddy bears, very gentle. I think it's more to do with wether they've been selected for gentleness - i.e. aggressive queens replaced, as there are more traits than colour to determine how near to the "native" bees they are.
I've heard that typically French-native-type bees are very aggressive, whereas dark British bees are generally placid.

joanne

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 7100
Location: Morecambe, Lancashire

Posted: Thu Jun 04, 09 12:59 pm Post subject:

beean wrote:

My first colony was just like that - very dark black bee's and very very gentle - They were a Buckfast strain - unfortunately the offspring appear to be totally different character much more like the traditional black bee in temperament - I've now got what appears to be a Carnolian strain and they too are very placid

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