They’ve buzzed off !
Within the last year figures show a national beehive loss of 17.3% with substantional regional variations making the North of England the highest loss of 26%. The loss has been due to a poor summer followed by one of the harshest winters in 30 years and the Varroa mite and other new diseases. Bee’s produce the following: honey, beeswax, pollen, royal jelly & propolis.
Honey Bees
Honey bees (apis mellifera) are social bees that live in hives of up to 50,000 bees per hive, they eat nectar (a sweet liquid made by flowers) which they then turn into honey. Whilst collecting nectar the bees collect pollen on hairs on their back legs which they then carry to the next flower and some is lost resulting in the pollination of that flower.
Bumble Bees
These are relatively large hairy social bee's (bombus) that live in colonies of up to a few hundred which can be underground in mouse holes or the bases of tall grasses especially on sunny banks. The young are fed on pollen and nectar and only the Queen survive the winter before they start a new colony the following year.
Mason Bees
Not all bee's sting or live in colonies, some are solitary and build individual nests. One particular solitary bee, the Red Mason bee (Osmia rufa) is an excellent pollinator and safe around children and pets.
