April 15, 2007 Update

Well, if it isn't the drought, it’s a flood, the cold and then there is, SNOW at Easter. What's next? Oklahoma sure is living up to its reputation. Our weather has really been CRAZY. In the 70's one day and snow the next. POOR BEES don't know what to do. I was outside today with a coat and hood, it was cold, and those bees were flying. If you are making splits don't make them too small (a minimum of 3 fames). Keep an eye out for those Varroa Mites. Treat when found.

Colony Collapse DISORDER (CCD)
If you don't know what the symptoms are, they are as follows:

1. In collapsed colony's
    a. A complete absence of adult bees in colonies with no or little build up of
        dead bees in the colonies or in front of those colonies
    b. The presence of capped brood in colonies.
    c. The presence of food stores, both honey and pollen bee bread
        i. which is not touched or robbed by other bees within 2 weeks, and
        ii. when infested by other pest such as wax moths
         or small hive beetles, the invasion is noticeably delayed.
2. In cases where the colony appear to be actively collapsing.
    a. An insufficient workforce to maintain the brood that is present.
    b. The workforce seems to be made up of young bees.
    c. The Queen is present.
    d. The cluster seems not to consume provided feed, Syrup or patties.

I have been hearing some horror stories about this thing. Notice I said thing. No one knows what it is. There are a lot of people guessing and several are working on its cause. Hopefully they will discover the cause before it becomes a big problem here in central Oklahoma. So far the most sensible thing that I have heard is, a certain pesticide that France outlawed in 2004 because of large bee losses there in 2003. They haven't had any big losses since. It's hard beeing patient. See ya Tuesday.