BeeBase, the Good the Bad and the Ugly !

[user 20297]

You could use the Covid analogy. If we didnt rely on the a globalist 'free trade' market then it would most likely have been isolated or contained.

Now I get the feeling you're just on a wind-up.

 

[fizzle]

You do realise that bees fly quite long distances, right?

Where are these natural barriers that will stop foul brood spreading out of a particular locality?

Yes I do, up to 3 miles I believe. There will be natural forage barriers along the way. Peat land is little to no use for bees in spring and early summer for example.

 

[user 20297]

Just try it: Beebase - Beekeeping information resource for Beekeepers

 

[fizzle]

I had ordered parts from CN on e bay at the time that covid broke out over here. I was afraid to open the packet when it arrived

 

[mbc]

But no evidence to the contrary. If foul brood spread 'naturally' there would be little or no bees.

Ooh, I'm liking this, whole can of worms.
Truth is, foulbrood does spread naturally, exacerbated by beekeepers certainly, but been around and plaguing bees since day dot. Most cope, it's probably just the economic impact of beekeepers inadvertently spreading it far and wide that makes it more of an issue in relatively recent times.
I don't think anybody really gave a flying figg about foulbrood until we had movable frame hives, this was a game changer though, all of a sudden one infected hive could give rise to dozens more by careless dispersal of the equipment from a deadout. Its just not that infectious though, robbing out of a deadout in a tree or skep just doesn't carry the same risks of passing on the disease as reusing infected combs, the miracle of the proventriculus takes care of that.

 

[Patrick1]

Varroa sailed over on their own ship

Varroa sailed over on their own ship

Fizzle :- Why does Ireland import so many bees if this is your naive impression of what happens in reality.
It is usually those shouting that have no clue as to the real position, just dragged along by hysterical comments from associations like the BBKA. Interesting that they seem to have now realised the mistakes they have made and withdrawn opposition by way of the government petition at least.

As a footnote to your flawed assumptions on EFB/AFB and varroa, drones are proven to spread these, no miracle or ships in sight.

 

[Wilco]

It will spread locally until it wipes out the local population and then dies out as there are no more hosts.

No.

In your scenario the local area will be repopulated naturally or by beekeepers. Swarms will move into the old feral bee nest sites used previously.

However, foulbroods are spore forming. This means that when those new bees arrive, even if completely FB free, they will be exposed to the spores from the old lot and the disease will re-emerge in an area. Not by being imported but because it was already there.

Spore forming is an amazing survival strategy but a pain for us.

 

[Erichalfbee]

But no evidence to the contrary. If foul brood spread 'naturally' there would be little or no bees.

Well, there is can Ex SBI amongst us on this thread who does have first hand evidence

 

[IndiBee]

I was wondering how they mite have got across the channel - turns out..................

 

[mbc]

It will spread locally until it wipes out the local population and then dies out as there are no more hosts.

No bee population is an island, unless they're on an island.
More and more I'm realising bees live in a very interconnected web (much like mycelium and fungi) where each colony is aware of, and interacts with, her neighbours.

 

[Murox]

That's right. Covid is well known to have arrived in a shipping container of Chinese electronics....

Damn, I thought it arrived because people fly in self contained incubators called passenger jets - I live and learn!!

 

[Swn58]

It's not a choice, it's a legal requirement with livestock.

Sorry.....just catching up on here. Is it now a legal requirement to register on Beebase now? I have always been registered with them. However, after this season, where I kept getting warnings of EFB within 3kls of my farm hives. I was thinking of deregistering. It's been far too stressful. It led to me voluntarily quarantining that apiary and prevented the expansion I had planned there. The last warning I had was on the 20th Sept and I was informed that the inspectors finished the season in October!

 

[Swn58]

The location of my hives is on my honey jar!

So are mine......but not "Second field on the left, where the old barn is." I use postcodes and general location. People who steal hives may have the experience, but they would certainly have problems in regard to my apiaries!

 

[Wilco]

Sorry.....just catching up on here. Is it now a legal requirement to register on Beebase now? I have always been registered with them. However, after this season, where I kept getting warnings of EFB within 3kls of my farm hives. I was thinking of deregistering. It's been far too stressful. It led to me voluntarily quarantining that apiary and prevented the expansion I had planned there. The last warning I had was on the 20th Sept and I was informed that the inspectors finished the season in October!

No worries. The above post referred to livestock, i.e. Cattle, sheep, pigs, >49 poultry/waterfowl etc.. This thread has discussed whether Beebase registration should be a legal requirement but at present it is not.

 

[fizzle]

In your scenario the local area will be repopulated naturally or by beekeepers. Swarms will move into the old feral bee nest sites used previously.

It would take years. In that time the wax moths do their job and life moves on.

 

[fizzle]

Fizzle :- Why does Ireland import so many bees if this is your naive impression of what happens in reality.
It is usually those shouting

I'll try not to shout. I've no idea why Ireland imports so many bees. I guess there is a shortage seen as best of Irish have been leaving for years. Sucks

 

[Wilco]

It would take years. In that time the wax moths do their job and life moves on.

It may well do but the spores would still be there, ready to revive and infect when the conditions are right. That's basically their raison d'etre.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556071/
Reference 4 of Wikipedia page:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endospore
Diseases caused by spore formers are generally very hard to eradicate.

 

[Nige.Coll]

Beebase is what it is, a vain attempt to have an idea where bees are.
The disease monitoring and work by the SBI's is of immense value.
Some seem to be hung up on the fact they may have bees that are worth stealing, in most cases the thieves would bring them back if truth was known.
Register or not it's up to you.
But don't whinge when you get EFB because some barefoot beekeeper up the road is anti-establishment.

 

[Nige.Coll]

I'll try not to shout. I've no idea why Ireland imports so many bees. I guess there is a shortage seen as best of Irish have been leaving for years. Sucks

Ireland imports so many bees because the background bees are crap. They are the only country that has imported bees by the thousand and has the cheek to say it is a population worth saving.
All the imports are of native bees lmao.
Lowest honey production per colony in Europe.

 

[fizzle]

Ireland imports so many bees because the background bees are crap.
Lowest honey production per colony in Europe.

Doesn't matter how good the bees are when there is no forage but I'm sure there is some scientific papers out there to discredit that assumption...



PS: do Ireland's and England's biggest honey producers even keep local bees?