Honey bees and why they swarm • “Seychelles is one of the handful of countries where bees are still in a very good state of health” – Patrick Samson |07 December 2019
Honey bees are clearly vital parts of our ecosystem, acting as highly efficient pollinators of our food crops as well as for wild flora. We need bees to keep our crops and earth healthy, but in recent years their numbers have dwindled by the billions. The Bee Movie which came out in 2007 tries to explain the world on the importance of bees and how we should care for them.
Recently there are some attempts to educate the Seychellois about the honey bees and how it can become a viable economic venture. Seychelles NATION contacted Patrick Samson, a beekeeper, to know more about these special insects.
Seychelles Nation: Why do we need to educate ourselves on bees?
Patrick Samson: Seychelles is known for its beautiful unique flora and fauna but very few think of the humble honey bees until they find a ball size clump hanging under their veranda or a branch of their favourite tree, or see a cloud of bees buzzing over their heads. For some it is the stuff of nightmares and fear but for the beekeepers it is an easy way to collect a new colony and start a new hive.
It is not clear if the honey bees have always been here or whether they have been introduced by men in the early days but whatever the fact, we can confirm that they have been here for a very long time. Honey bees produce honey and store pollen which they use as food. These are stored in combs of wax excreted by glands under the bee’s abdomen. Beekeepers have learned how to keep these insects in boxes and take advantage of the wax, honey and pollen which they produce and store.
Due to our isolation as mid-oceanic islands, our bees have been protected from common bee pathogens, such as varroa mites, tracheal mites, small hive beetles and several bacteria and viruses affecting and killing bees all over the world. The varroa mite is an external parasite that attacks honey bees. It can only reproduce within a honey bee colony and for this reason is responsible for killing off many colonies all over the world. The deadly mite is yet to arrive in Seychelles. Seychelles is one of a handful of countries where bees are still in a very good state of health and it was with this in mind that a group of dedicated beekeepers joined together to form the Seychelles Beekeepers Association.
Seychelles NATION: Please tell us more about the Seychelles Beekeepers Association
Patrick Samson: The main aim of this association is to bring all the beekeepers together to work and share knowledge and best practice and collaborate with government and other local and international institutions to promote beekeeping and put policies and legislation in place to ensure that these deadly pathogens never reach our shores. Many of these pathogens can only reach our shores if they are carried on the back of a bee. Consequently it is extremely important that the general public is made aware of the real dangers of importing bees into the country. Other vectors of diseases can also be brought in through the importation of raw honey, either as comb honey or in jars.
Seychelles NATION: When do honey bees work?
Patrick Samson: Seychelles has two honey seasons: a short season in April/May and a longer season in September through to December. So why do bees swarm? Honey bees, Apismellifera, swarm for one of two reasons: either the hive has become too crowded so that the colony splits into two groups (or more), with one group remaining in the existing hive – or they abscond. In the latter case, all bees including the queen abandon the existing hive completely due to lack of food or water, parasite or disease infestation, frequent disturbance by humans and/or animals, weather changes, poor ventilation or problems with the queen.
Worker bees are able to detect when it is time to swarm due to overcrowding of the hive or the lack of pheromone production by the queen. In preparation for swarming, the workers will deprive the queen of food in order to slim her down so she can fly. They will also agitate and run her around in order to prevent her from laying too many eggs. If they are going to swarm, they will create new queen cells and allow the queen to lay eggs so a new queen can emerge and take over the hive.
In a hive only the queen can lay eggs and depending on the amount of food, what the larvae are fed in the first three days will dictate whether they develop into a worker bee or a queen. With this knowledge, beekeepers can manipulate their colony to make new queens at will. The queen once hatched (after 16 days) will fly out of the hive and mate with several drones. She then returns to the hive and lays eggs – in some cases over a thousand a day. Bees are indeed interesting little insects. The queen has the ability to store the sperm from her mating flight for up to 5 years, if not more. She can choose to lay a fertilised egg, and this eventually develops into a worker or a queen, depending on the amount of food (royal jelly) being fed to the developing larvae. However, if she chooses to lay an unfertilised egg, this will develop into a male bee (drone) whose sole purpose is to mate with young emerging queens.
Seychelles NATION: What are the other functions of the bees?
Patrick Samson: Besides making honey, honey bees are essential for pollinating approximately 90 percent of food crops globally. Many of our favourite foods like mangoes, cherries, apples, and other fruit, vegetable and nut crops would not exist without these hard-working bees.
Bees choose to swarm during the honey season when there are plenty of flowers and new swarming colonies can quickly build some honey store to keep the colony going in times of need. Before swarming the bees will fill their stomach with honey and leave with the old queen. Because their stomachs are so full, it is difficult for these worker bees to sting at this time. The queen is the only laying member of the colony and the other bees cannot survive without her, consequently they will follow the queen wherever she goes in order to keep the colony alive. Beekeepers will locate the queen, trap her in a small container, put her in a hive and all the workers will follow her into the hive. After 2 or 3 days, once the worker bees start building comb, the queen is released and the process of reproduction and storage of honey and pollen goes on, all under the watchful eye of a caring beekeeper.
Seychelles NATION: So, what can we do about a swarm?
Patrick Samson: Understand that if you leave the bees alone, they will leave you alone, and it will only take a few hours or at most a day or two for them to find and settle into a new home. Bees, as well as our other important and beneficial insects are struggling. Our tendency to develop land and our extensive use of harmful chemicals is wiping out their natural habitat. The public can truly make a difference by ceasing to use pesticides.
For help in relocating a swarm or hive contact the beekeepers association on 2590608 or through our face book page Beekeepers Association of Seychelles.
