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Men in white suits

November 10, 2021 November 2021 No Comments

“They are coming to take me away. Ha ha!!”

Little men in white suits!  But not off to the Funny Farm this time.  It is merely two avid bee keepers checking their hives to ensure they are healthy.

Under the Biosecurity Act all beekeepers have a legal obligation to register both as a beekeeper and to register their apiaries.  So, when an issue arises, beekeepers are informed if there is a problem.

And yes there is. The presence of American Foulbrood has been located in hives within a two kilometre distance of Martinborough. It is therefore imperative all hives are checked to see if they are affected.  

Elimination of American Foulbrood in New Zealand is seen as possible because the country has a relatively small population of honeybee colonies, and because importation of additional colonies and other materials capable of carrying AFB is controlled. 

Some New Zealand beekeepers have shown that elimination on a national level is possible. By destroying colonies instead of using antibiotics and management techniques to avoid the spread to other hives they have effectively eliminated the disease from their own business.

Armed with smokers and clad in bee suits Lachie McLeod and Ro Griffiths not only check for foulbrood but simultaneously assess the health of the hive.  Varoa strips were inserted to contain the Varoa mite. More honey supers were added. No AFB was found but there was a significant amount of drone brood. 

If the queen has used up her sperm storage, she will begin to lay only drones and will sometimes do so in the honey super. If she is only laying drones then the colony will eventually die off with no one to care for the brood, collect pollen and nectar, and make honey. Cleaning out the drone brood helps to prevent the Queen from taking flight surrounded by a swarm of bees.

So with the hives carefully managed a good honey harvest will be the reward. 

Photo caption: Lachie McLeod and Ro Griffiths check for foulbrood

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