Why African bees are not killer bees?

What a surprise?

(Experts put on protective suites while the novice are not)

Half way around the world believes that bees from and in Africa are "killer bees" a term used to describe African bees.

Well since we started going in the bee yards during day time, our bees are becoming more friendly everyday.

We will never call them killer bees though they sting.

Toni was surprised when David's sons were watching Toni, Isaac and David moving bees from a damaged hive into a new hive. We would shake the bees into a new hive without problem.

On many occasions I have worked bees with less protection and this is achieved by applying more smoke.

We commonly use maize cobs as fuel and assorted pieces of wood which don't produce odour that can easily stain the honey or irritate the bees which can easily lead to absconding.
We stopped using cow dung because it would stain honey with a bad odour and also the body and clothes.

Since smoke interferes with the smelling senses of the bees, children who are watching must smoke themselves every after a couple of minutes and this sometimes enable them to get fully involved in the operations.

Confidence is very important while working bees because when you are nervous, the body temperature rises (and produce sweat) and adrenalin is produced which enables bees to detect the you.

The way how you handle the bees is the way how they respond back; when you handle them gently and slowly yes they will not attack you badly.

African bees are killer bees if you don't play your cards well!

Alternatives for log hives

Box hives can fix it

A box hive (has no top bars)

By Isaac Semwanga

African bees have been on earth for very many years and the bees were not domesticated in the first place therefore bees had their nests in wild environment; forests. The bees nested in hollow stems and branches of trees. Since the bees lived such lifestyle for many years, they got used to such nests and ways of living.

Human beings would go (usually in big numbers) to hunt bees for honey during the honey flow seasons and this involved destroying nests in order to access the honey they want.

Well, today no more honey hunting since most of the trees are cut down for charcoal burning and termite hills are poisonous because humans use poison for killing termites. This has left bees with only limited nests to take up and these nests are hives constructed by man.  So in Uganda and Nakasongola in particular beekeepers are using log hives, Topbar hives are very few use langstroth hives.

A log hive

But before the introduction of modern hives ie topbar hives and frame hives, beekeepers were using log hives, pots, straw woven hives, and calabashes. These hives or nests today are referred to as local beekeeping hives involving traditional and primitive practices because a beekeeper cannot easily inspect his bees. Thanks to innovations in beekeeping for the new employed technology in beekeeping where bees can be inspected and manipulated with ease.

Beekeepers in Uganda today are using a mix of modern hives (Kenyan Topbar hives) and log hives, and the primary reason for using modern hives is to increase production since the KTB hives are big enough compared to log hives but this has not proved right since the modern hives are the least productive! Well records from other sources may say KTBH are performing hives but beekeepers in WBA are not convinced by the productions from Modern hives as compared to log hives.

Yes, we cannot rule this cause out because bees traditionally are used to log hives than modern hives; therefore they are more comfortable in log or traditional hives. This is true and since the sizes of these hives is small and simple compared to modern hives, bees find it easier for them to cover (population), and guard it very well. Bees also are used at building long combs just along the hive (end to end) (horizontally), and since they consider swarming (colony multiplication) as their first priority, they find it easier to populate the existing hive and then swarm.

Anyway it’s all another big story to tell. 

Since early 1990s to-date, charcoal burning and urbanization as led to limited access by bees and beekeepers to log hives and wild nests for bees, therefore the bees have to accept the available alternatives which are modern hives though

Toni and Balijula working on the box hive (Esau watching)

Mr. Balijula after failing to make his topbar hives production, he decided to make his own box hive without movable bars. His log hives are productive.

He made a 5.7ft long box hive (see in the photo) and another one which is about 5.2ft long. The bees filled all the boxes from end to end and to our surprise, they build combs which are about 1.5 to 2 feet long and then start a new one like that. His only draw with his innovation is; the hives are too long, he can’t reach the combs beyond 1.5ft away. So he leaves a lot of in the hives than he is supposed to leave!

The box hives are very easy to make; just join pieces of wood to make a hollow box and later cover the ends like we always do with log hives. I would recommend a size of 3.5ft or 4ft long and 1ft wide and high (width and height).

Inside the box hive

Let me go and make two for myself.

Bees come and colonise them!!

Honey Soy flour recipe

Sweet Honey Milk Soy flour recipe

Hey folks, we all know Wampiti is a land where milk and honey flows endlessly; thanks for the blessings. Since there is honey and milk always, lets us make a recipe deploying both milk and honey to “deliciously feel the tastes of Wampiti”. Well in the information provided below, I have substituted milk with soy flour; so here we go:-

Ingredients

Honey

1 part soy flour

1 part honey

1 part natural g-nut paste

This is a high protein snack for kids and maybe good even for bees. Actually you can use less honey to make the recipe less sweet. Adjust the measurements to suit your taste.

You want milk? Simply replace soy flour with milk.

How to split a colony

How to Split a colony using a top bar hive

By Isaac Semwanga

Hello fellow beekeepers, thank you very much for supporting God’s creation by hiving his creatures.  Bees are the only insects that make food (honey) for human beings! And we hardly exist on earth for long if bees varnish! They help human beings by pollinating crops as well as store honey (food and medicine) for man.

Of course there are crops (such as Vanilla) that don’t need bees for pollination but man wish bees would do the job because it is hectic!

Splitting bees

Splitting a colony is the only way beekeepers in Nakasongola (Wampiti in particular) can get new colonies for the empty hives since swarms are becoming less and less.  

Yes, swarms would colonise empty hives during swarming seasons but this stopped because honey hunting is no more (this involved destroying nests and the bees had to look for new nests and end up taking hives), colony management is high (some beekeepers don’t allow there bees to swarm), and bee population is declining!

Currently, members don’t have skills for rearing queens and there are no packed bees which one can buy and install in the new hive.

Therefore the only alternative for natural swarms to colonise beehives is to split existing colonies in order to get new colonies for empty hives.

For the past 2 years, members have been trying out this method but with limited success of 1 out of 10. With effect of considerations like moving combs with clinging bees, combs with eggs, pollen, larva and some honey bees still don’t last long in the new beehive! Well some bees are patient enough to eat the sugar syrup or honey you provide to them before absconding!

From my own experience, I have had success with 8 hives out of 10. I am going to illustrate my procedure of splitting hive below.

Although African bees are known for absconding so easily, but they don’t easily abscond from a hive they have lived for some good time. Yet they can easily abscond from a new hive!

Selecting and maintaining good traits of bees

Bees have characters that line up following each generation and this linage can be maintained if followed up closely by splitting the bees.

Some bees collect and store honey than others while others rear babies much more compared to honey stored. Some are docile and easy to work with. Other bees don’t easily abscond.

Procedures followed in splitting a colony

Before you plan to split a colony, please consider the following;

• 1.       Strength or size of the colony. Always split strong big colonies which have enough nurse bees, nectar/ pollen and brood
• 2.       Season. Never split a colony during dearth period. Make sure there are abundant flowers for nectar and usually the colony should be on the buildup stage.
• 3.       Presence of queen cells. This ensures that the bees themselves were planning to swarm in the near future therefore your coming-in just helps you to take the swarm into your hive directly before the bees fly away from your apiary.
• 4.       Presence of eggs and young larva. The bees can feed the larva and breed a queen in the newly created hive from the hatched eggs or larva.
• 5.       Smoke the new hive with wax or propolis to give it a nice scent. You can also rub the hive body with lemon grass just give the new hive a nice smell.

Splitting exercise

Bring the empty hive close to the old colonized hive

Transfer 2-4 bars full of brood and eggs

Transfer 2 bars with honey

Transfer one bar with pollen

Arranging the bars in the new hive

Just leaving 2 empty bars at the side of the entrance, install 1 bar with honey and pollen, install 1 bar with honey followed by brood (eggs and larva) and then 1 bar with honey.

Leave 4 empty bars following the last honey bar then install a follower board or anything you use to reduce on the size of the hive.

Move the old hive with old colony into a new spot and then install the new hive with a new colony into the old spot. This helps the new colony to collect more bees from the field to increase the population.

Considerations.

• Use less or no smoke. To avoid driving bees off the combs yet you need them into the new hive.
• Do the splitting activity late in the day when more bees are back in the hive. This ensures more bees being transferred into the new hive.
• Always move combs or bars with clinging bees to ensure that there are enough nursing bees in the new hive.
• If during your transfer, you never had a queen cell on any of the combs, you can help the bees choose a cell to make a queen by expanding two cells with newly hatched eggs. This helps the bees so much.
• Honey combs installed on both sides act as blankets for the larva. Always ensure that you have got enough bees in the new hive which will sit on the combs usually with larva and warm them.

Note:

Transferring old colony

Since the bees are used to their hive, they will not think about absconding from their hive too soon even if you change their location.

Bees in the new hive

Since the bees are in a new hive with no queen, they need something keeping them secure. Therefore leaving them in the old location, helps them to continue their daily work as usual; going into fields and coming back without losing their spot. And they don’t lose any bee from their population since all bees know the location and surprisingly, more bees can join them from the old hive when they mistakenly fly back to the old location! This helps on building more strength to the new hive.

Always provide the new bees with a small space which they can warm and guard well.

Never forget to share with us your experience!

Keep the bees buzzing!

Do bees benefit from Maize flowers and collecting Cassava flour?

Bees collecting cassava flour at one of WBA member's home

Here in Nakasongola; during the flowering season for maize, a thousands of bees swarm into the fields onto the flowers of maize. And during the dry season especially December to early March, here in Nakasongola, bees fly into shops and anywhere they find cassava flour. And some beekeepers during the dry season, provide the bees with cassava flour. 

And there is a believe that when bees collect a lot of cassava flour usually they produce a lot of honey unfortunately i cant not prove it though i see the bees collecting cassava flour.

Do really bees benefit from collecting cassava flour?

Conrad Berube says:

Bees are basically little robots and will react to their environment in the way by which evolutionary forces have molded them.  They will collect many powdery materials that have little, or no, nutritional value compared to what they would get from pollen (including things like powdered stone or sawdust).  

 

For instance here is the nutritional breakdown for cassava flour;

    
    

Nutritional Summary: Cals 160 Fat 0.28g Carbs 38.06g Prot 1.36g   There are 160 calories in 100 grams of Cassava. Calorie Breakdown: 1% fat, 96% carbs, 3% prot.

 

     

Here's the same for corn flour 

Nutritional Summary:

Cals 361

Fat 3.86g

Carbs 76.85g

Prot 6.93g

 

There are 361 calories in 100 grams of White Whole Grain Corn Flour.

Calorie Breakdown: 9% fat, 86% carbs, 5% prot.

 

 

Bees get most of the calories they need from nectar so the high carb substances (96% for cassava, 86 % for corn flour, represent wasted effort for bees, since pollen, is much higher in protein-- typically around 30%: 

Nutritional Summary:

Cals 314

Fat 4.9g

Carbs 43.5g

Prot 24.1g

 

There are 314 calories in 100 grams of Bee Pollen.

Calorie Breakdown: 14% fat, 55% carbs, 31% prot.

 

Here is the nutritional contents of Pollen:

• Protein } 20-35% protein by weight
• Fatty acids }
• Vitamin C }
• Iron }
• Zinc }
• Copper }
• Magnesium }

So if bees are collecting cassava or corn flour they need to collect/eat from 5-10 times as much to get the same amount of protein.  If, for some reason, beekeepers really want to supplement the pollen their bees are getting soy flour is a much better choice.

 

Nutritional Summary:

Cals 436

Fat 20.65g

Carbs 35.19g

Prot 34.54g

 

There are 436 calories in 100 grams of Soy Flour (Full Fat).

Calorie Breakdown: 40% fat, 33% carbs, 27% prot.  Well from the above discussion, it shows that there is less nutritional value in cassava flour compared to soy flour. But in Nakasongola, many families grow cassava and can easily produce and provide cassava flour to their bees. And soy flour is not accessible unless one goes into a supermarket and buy it because very few or no one grows soy in Nakasongola. Soy is not so much grown in Uganda compared to cassava, sweetpotatoes, yams, maize and banana/matooke.  And to my surprise and experience, bees don't collect maize flour so much like they would collect cassava flour.

Bee buzzing signalise a coming Visitor

Hello fellow beekeepers and sweet honey lovers. 

Bytheway, does anyone have to mention that honey is sweet or honey obviously means sweet? 

Who knows? Me and You!

Beekeeping has been around for centuries, lots of stories told about bees and tons of honey eaten. In our community and Uganda, we have a beliefs associated with bees and we are going to look at one of the commonest.

A bee buzzing around a member of family

This is so common and widely known by people in various communities of Uganda that whenever a bee buzzes around a family member for several minutes usually for 30minutes it indicates that a special visitor is coming to that home for a visit. Often the visitor a long time no see person!

And this sign of a buzzing bee sometimes can last for two days before the visitor come. I cannot verify the validity of this belief though because it is not common and sometimes it is just a coincidence that a bee buzzes and a visitor come after.

Usually bees’ buzzes around people’s fingers while at home and working with water and this indicates that the bees are looking for water. At home when I see bees coming to me while I am washing utensils or washing clothes especially during the dry season, I just know that the trough where I put water for my bees is empty; therefore I just get water and fill it. But when bees are looking for water, they come in numbers of more than two bees at a time. And if it is signaling for a visitor, it is usually one and buzzes around the head and hears!

Bees are indeed wonderful insects – see one come to you to deliver a message that I am coming very soon to visit you.  

Bees keep buzzing.

Crossed Comb building in Topbars

How to avoid crossed comb building in Top bar hives?

Hello beekeepers, thank you very much for preserving bees and helping them to live happily as we enjoy their sweet honey.

Today we are going to solve a common problem to most of the beekeepers that are moving from log hives or fixed comb hives into movable comb hives.

Many beekeepers complain about crossed comb building in Kenyan Top bar Hive being a common problem. Well this is something very simple to manage and control.

Crossed comb building is when bees build combs across the bars instead of building each comb on a separate bar as designed. Usually bees crossed comb building is when bees build one comb on two or more bars.

 The following should be noted;

1. The width of bars.

The bars should strictly 3.2cm or 32mm wide. This was happily measured by our predecessors so; we just have to follow the principle.

2. Regular supervision is also very important whereby a new colony can easily build the combs in a wrong direction. Therefore when you supervise them before they build very many big combs, you can easily break the small white combs and align them correctly.

3. Repair/ clean bars. Whenever you open your beehive, make sure you scrap off all the propolis bees used to glue the bars. This will maintain the width of the bars.

4. Starter strips are also recommended for example you may use propolis or beeswax on the bars following the line you wish the bees to follow while building combs. This can avoid crossed comb in top bars. Take an example when a grooved bar is used, you can melt beeswax and pour it in the groove on the bar and when it cools, it stays there and when bees colonise the hive, they will start building combs following them.

5. Avoid hanging a beehive in a slanting position. The bees always maintain a vertical comb building position. If a beehive is slanting at an angle which is not right, the bees will not adjust to that angle but instead they will build combs following their own directions and angles.

6. Avoid leaving broken and destroyed combs in the hive which will act as barriers when bees are working. This is very common with brown combs are hard and bees cannot easily chew and repair them.

7. Maintain equal sizes of bars. Make sure that the side of bars facing inside the hive is level. This doesn’t matter whether you are using V-shaped, U-shaped, Block- shaped of grooved bars so long the sizes are equal.

Yes, beekeeping is fun, watch your bees build combs and find out why they are building them wrongly from the order you wished them to follow. I recommend breaking the combs when they are still empty, new and soft, and put them in the right position.