Exam Revision notes Part 1 Flashcards
Why is the Varroa mite a dangerous bee pest
The Varroa mite spreads viruses to the bees which can lead to colony collapse.
Name two different ways in which a novice beekeeper can obtain a stock of bees
The can purchase them through their local Association or a reputable local supplier.
Varroa mites prefer worker brood over drone brood for reproduction true or false
False
What is varroa
Varroa are a honey bee pest , it is a parasitic mite that lives on the bees.
What time of the year are drones normally present in a hive?
Late spring through summer, they are ejected from the hive in autumn as the hive prepares for winter.
Queens and worker honeybees are both female. What are the main differences between the two castes?
The worker bees carry out the majority of jobs in the hive from regulating temperature to cleaning out cells , feeding young , caring for the queen, receiving food and storing it in the appropriate places, guarding the hive and foraging duties.
The queen lays the eggs for the hive to grow and survive. She has a longer tail and slightly larger legs , her thorax is also more distinctive than a workers.
List two reasons why the smoker is such a valuable tool for working honeybee colonies.
Smoke masks alarm pheromones which include various chemicals that are released by guard bees or bees that are injured during a beekeeper’s inspection.
The smoke can be used to to move the bees so not to harm them during an inspection.
How do bees carry nectar back to the hive?
The nectar is stored in a honey sac, a second stomach, until she returns to the hive.
What information does the round dance convey to foragers?
By performing this dance, successful foragers can share information about the direction and distance to patches of flowers yielding nectar and pollen, to water sources, or to share new nest-site locations with other members of the colony.
What is American foulbrood?
American foulbrood, caused by a spore-forming bacteria . It is a highly infectious bee disease. It is the most widespread and destructive of the bee brood diseases.
When the beekeeper opens a hive for inspection, what should he/she normally be looking for?
Honey bee pests and diseases, the presence of brood in all stages ( eggs, larvae and Capped) and adequate food stores.
How would you know a drone from a worker?
Drones have huge eyes that touch at the top of the head. Female worker bees have much smaller eyes that are well separated on the sides of their heads.
The drones are usually much larger and have larger rounder bodies.
Name three ways in which American foulbrood is spread within an apiary.
Robbing.
Sharing resources( eg frames of feed or bees ) .
Cross contamination from tools and gloves.
During an inspection, how would the
beekeeper know that the queen was
present and OK?
The presence of eggs suggests the queen is present and laying within the last 72 hours.
Another sign is the bees are behaving normal and not excessively fanning.
What is the first job that needs to be done
in the apiary in spring?
Remove dead colony’s and inspect for disease.
Clean debris off floors
What is a cast of bees
Check
Where on the honeybee are the pollen baskets located?
Female honey bees carry pollen in corbiculae, or pollen baskets, located on the bees’ back legs.
How would you know the queen from a worker?
The queen bee is larger, but more specifically, she is longer. Her lengthy abdomen extends out beyond the tip of her wings, giving her the appearance of having short wings.
She also had slightly longer legs.
Are swarms normally good-tempered?
Bees that have just swarmed are usually remarkably good tempered. but it’s still very advisable to wear protective clothing.
Name the types of cells that may be found on a brood frame.
There are six sections of a frame which are: capped honey stores; nectar; pollen; brood; queen cells, drone cells and empty cells.
Which sex of the varroa mite survives the winter in a colony that has a broodless period?
Only mature female mites will survive after leaving the brood cells.
What is a skep ?
a domed hive made of twisted straw.
Name two types of hive in general use.
The National hive
The Langstroth hive
What is a crownboard?
The crown board is a cover used to close off the top of a bee hive so that the main protective roof can be easily removed.
Why would a queen become a drone
layer?
A drone-laying queen arises after a queen has run out of sperm or when a virgin queen fails to mate properly
What kind of a disease is Nosema and
what would make you suspect that a
colony has it?
The disease is caused by the spore forming microsporidian. dysentery Shorter life of worker bees Lack of industry in the colony (slowness of development) Lower than normal propensity to sting Crawling bees Disjointed wings Distended abdomens High propensity to supersede
In beekeeping, what is meant by
“robbing”?
When the bees from a different colony enter another hive to steal honey stores.
How many days does a worker bee spend
as a larva?
Check
What would cause honey to ferment?
If the honey is harvested too early when its moisture content is to high
What happens if the queen is accidentally killed
Once the The workers will realise they will begin raising an emergency queen.
How many days after capping of the larva
in its cell does the worker bee emerge ?
9 days after the cell is capped the adult bee emerges
What is the difference between swarming
and supersedure?
Swarming is when the hive splits in two as a form of reproduction.
Supersedure is when the colony asses the current queen is no longer fit to for her job and they set about replacing her.
Why is ivy an important source of bee
forage?
It is the last source of nectar and pollen heading in to the winter and is an important source of winter food.
In general, how long does the adult
worker bee live in summer?
The life span of an adult bee in summer is around 6-7 weeks
Describe two actions that a beekeeper
may take to reduce drifting between
colonies.
The beekeeper can
Face hive entrances in different directions.
Make the hive entrances distinctive, using shapes and colours that the bees can see and differentiate between.
For what purpose do bees collect
propolis?
Propolis is a resinous material used by bees to seal hive walls and to strengthen the borders of the combs and the hive entrance. It has shown to have antivirus and antibacterial properties.
What causes laying workers ?
Laying workers are caused if or when a hive becomes hopelessly queenless or queen and brood pheromones drop to negligible levels.
What is a Porter bee-escape?
Acting as a one-way gate between boxes of your hive, the bee escape allows workers to leave a honey super or brood box but not return.
How would you know if there was a “honey flow” on?
There is lots of activity at the entrance, bees flying off fast and bees landing and slowly walking back in. The bees are usually more docile as they are focused on bringing in and processing nectar and pollen.
How is nectar changed into honey?
The nectar is passed from the forager to house bees in the hive, the enzymes in there sac further converts the nectar to honey , it is then placed in a cell to reduce the water content and get capped
