This photo of a queen bumblebee was taken at 5pm on Friday 20/3 – I don’t expect to win any prizes for it but it is a reminder that spring is on its way.
As you have probably guessed; we will have to forgo our Saturday meetings which were due to begin on Saturday 11th April and we were planning a working party to tidy up the apiary on the previous Saturday.
Alex assisted by the committee will be keeping the apiary running on a care and maintenance basis for the time being.
We are looking forward to doing some queen breeding and it should not be beyond our ingenuity to do this and still observe the government health guidelines. I think as time goes by many of us will devise ways of doing things without placing ourselves at risk.
David tells me that Martial Law in the Middle East during the 1970s where similar restrictions applied was defined as: one is company, two is a crowd and three is a riot.
And finally a sage note from by Philip: we wish everyone well during our current difficulties and rest assured that if we do right by the bees and look after them well their honey will certainly be even more important in helping keep us all well through the days to come.
The Apiary is near Tain on the west side of the bypass and is 500 yards along the Scotsburn Road on the left hand side at the Scottish Water Rosehill Reservoir. Its locality is unmarked. The Association does not accept any responsibility or liability for any loss, damage or injury to members or visitors arising from their presence at the Apiary.
Members and visitors are responsible for their own safety and they should ensure that they are suitably attired.
The apiary continues to be managed by Alex MacLaren. The Association's summer meetings, every second Saturday, are held there to enable members to contribute to the upkeep of the apiary and for beginners to gain hands-on experience from senior beekeepers. Donations of bee equipment are always welcome.
The Association's summer meetings, every second Saturday, are held there to enable members to contribute to the upkeep of the apiary and for beginners to gain hands-on experience from senior beekeepers. Members may also tend their own hives there with the permission of the Secretary.
The mite (or mites) invades the open brood cell shortly before capping and lays its own eggs. It prefers drone brood (see later). The hatched mite will then attach itself and tap into the grub when it hatches. When the young bee emerges it will have its parasite passenger feeding on it. This attachment is a source for many diseases/viruses which are responsible for the collapse of the hive if varroa remains untreated.
Varroa mites double in quantity every four weeks and once your hive hosts more than 1000 mites you will loose your colony. A close look for the visible presence of mites attached to the bees AND for the visible signs of shrunken and deformed wings disease (DWV) will show the problem. Once the infestation gets a hold healthy bees will jump ship and the colony will fail.
See the Varroa calculator on BeeBase and monitor the mite drop over several weeks in the spring / summer using an open mesh floor and sticky paper board. Further advice can be obtained from SASA and hive samples for testing can be sent to: S.A.S.A. 1 Rodinglaw Road, Edinburgh, EH12 9FJ tel:0131 244 8890 www.sasa.gov.uk (packages marked "Bee diseases"). Note the service is free.
For guidance to treat varroa we recommend Moray Bee Dinosaurs.
Any member of the public who is troubled by a swarm should contact a member of the committee who may be able to make arrangements to remove the swarm safely. .
The Association is also pleased to manage or relocate abandoned feral hives and is particularly interested in the native Scottish black bees. Please note that the Association will not accept any liability for loss, damage or injury which might arise from the handling and management of any third party bees by any member of this Association.
The association does not charge for removal of a swarm, however, any voluntary donation for the successful removal will be most welcome.
Should you have a swarm that needs dealing with, please in the first instance contact Colin Ridley.
The causative bacteria, Melissococcus plutonius is ingested by honey bee larvae after which the bacterium competes for food inside the larvae. For more information, check out the Bee Base page concerning EFB. Should you detect an EFB outbreak in your hives you should notify the SBA Northern Representative and Senior Agricultural Officer, Highland Area Office, Longman House, 28 Longman Road, Inverness IV1 1SF (Tel: 01463 234141). This ensures that the latest scientific and statistical information is held nationally.
Here's some great tips concerning bee-keeping:
Remember to check with the bee keeper members for more great tips!
Locally, you can always contact Highland Bee Supplies, or Fairfield Apiaries. Catalogues and price lists can be obtained from Thornes of Scotland or from Beekeeper clothing at very reasonable prices.
Donations of bee equipment are always welcome and we recycle and sell old foundation. New members are always asking for second hand equipment so if you have some spare which you want to get rid of please let us know!
Members who sell their own honey must consult and practise the regulations in Honey Regulations of 2003 and 2015. Please refer to the details published on the National Bee Unit.
Guidance is also available on the Scottish Beekeepers' Association. Failure to observe them may open you to prosecution or legal action from a consumer or from the Council Trading Standards officers. The guidance covers the Food Safety Regulations, rules of hygiene, labelling, composition, weights and measures, hazards analysis etc. This is available at the British Beekeepers' Association's web site.
Our Association is affiliated to the Scottish Beekeepers Assocation (SBA). SBA Subscriptions from 1 January 2018 are £35 including magazine and insurance. Our Northern Area representative is Heather MacLaren
BeeBase is the Animal and Plant Health Agency's (APHA) National Bee Unit website. It is designed for beekeepers and supports Defra, Welsh Government and Scotland's Bee Health Programmes and the Healthy Bees Plan, which set out to protect and sustain our valuable national bee stocks. It is strongly recommended that members register on this site.
Moray Beekeeping Dinosaurs are an informal, virtual and diverse group of beekeepers. We have no committee, no governors, no assets and have but one common aim and that is to promote beekeeping and the welfare of the honey bee without an excess of red tape and other items being introduced into our Beekeeping Associations.
Chairman: David Murison
Secretary and Treasurer: Colin Ridley
Apiary Manager: Alex Maclaren
Scientific Officer and Facebook editor: Heather Maclaren
Web Manager: Geoff Evelyn
Committee: John McGavin, Martin MacDonald, Philip Hall, Margaret Ramage
Contact Us for more information
A small group of amateur beekeepers based in the Dingwall area but serving the Black Isle northwards to Evanton/Alness in the east and westwards to the West Coast of Ross-shire where we have members.
Edderton Old Parish Church in Easter Ross lies about a mile east of the village of Edderton on the north side of the A836 and not far from the southern shore of the Dornoch Firth.
Tain stands, as it has stood through the centuries, between the heather and the sea, in the far north-east of Scotland. As the oldest Royal Burgh in Scotland it is proud of its possession of over 950 years of history offering a haven of rest in a world of frenetic activity.