"Survivor bees" found in Blenheim Forest

[alancooper]

I see yet another hyped story of lost native honey bees found - this time in today’s Guardian. Anyone fancy a swarmy Queen?

 

[Erichalfbee]

This?
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...rs-of-lost-british-honeybee-found-at-blenheim

 

[Erichalfbee]

Well if they are as described it's quite exciting...obviously they are not a beekeeper's bee but a great find nevertheless

 

[Bumble Bee Slim]

This?
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...rs-of-lost-british-honeybee-found-at-blenheim

What a wonderful story for a Sunday morning newspaper read rather than the usual doom and gloom .

 

[Boston Bees]

Read the article carefully people and keep your thinking brains engaged

All we have so far is some bees doing what bees do normally when living in trees, and a guy who has done some "wing morphology", which as far as I know, isn't the highest form of science.

Until proved otherwise by some actual science, it's just another cuddly Guardian article.

Sadly, even if disproved, this article will be quoted for the rest of time anyway. Ho hum

 

[Curly green finger's]

It also says beekeepers might be able to use them... And then goes on about supporting the paper financially.
If the nests are as small as the beekeeper says how could we use them?

 

[Boston Bees]

It also says beekeepers might be able to use them... And then goes on about supporting the paper financially.
If the nests are as small as the beekeeper says how could we use them?

I would imagine the nests are small because cavities in trees are generally small. As such the nest size despite what the article says proves precisely nothing about the origin of these bees

 

[Etton]

I’m a bit sceptical, what do others think?
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...ybee-found-at-blenheim?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

 

[user 20297]

It's as if someone has read all of Tom Seeley's work about bees and then transferred that information to suit a cosy, middle-England setting.....but obviously that's not the case. 400 acres is tiny for bees; yesterday @Finman was speculating (correctly in my opinion) that the odd bee may have travelled across the English Channel. It's not as if deepest Oxfordshire isn't full of beehives whose bees might, ever so slightly, have impinged on this population.

It's all wishful thinking.

 

[Ian123]

I wonder who’s more to blame for the rubbish, the beek or the reporter

 

[Finman]

It's as if someone has read all of Tom Sealey's work about bees and then transferred that information to suit a cosy, middle-England setting.....but obviously that's not the case. 400 acres is tiny for bees; yesterday @Finman was speculating (correctly in my opinion) that the odd bee may have travelled across the English Channel. It's not as if deepest Oxfordshire isn't full of beehives whose bees might, ever so slightly, have impinged on this population.

It's all wishful thinking.

It is important, that Ice Ace is mentioned in the connection of Black Bees' history. I mean prehistory. History means fact documents.

 

[Jimmy]

I’m a bit sceptical, what do others think?
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...ybee-found-at-blenheim?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Isn't @oxnatbees the same person as Felipe Salbany?

 

[Finman]

Story is exellent.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Does it matter? It’s a nice little story. Who but folk on here are going to pick it apart?
People argue about Amm here a lot. That doesn’t matter either. I keep saying. Bees are bees. If they suit you they are the best bees.

 

[Murox]

What lovely summertime pictures they managed to take in November, just in time to sell more papers during the CoP season. Potentially exciting though I sadly suspect the DNA evidence may well point in a different direction.

 

[Ian123]

Does it matter? It’s a nice little story. Who but folk on here are going to pick it apart?
People argue about Amm here a lot. That doesn’t matter either. I keep saying. Bees are bees. If they suit you they are the best bees.

Unfortunately it does matter because articles get reposted or quoted as fact. If he’s in the ear of the wild life trust guy quoted it affects other beeks trying to find sites on their land. I’ve seen it happen locally! More a case of never mind the truth just make it interesting

 

[Curly green finger's]

I would imagine the nests are small because cavities in trees are generally small. As such the nest size despite what the article says proves precisely nothing about the origin of these bees

I agree interesting that the article says about multiple queen's in the swarms.

 

[Boston Bees]

Potentially exciting though I sadly suspect the DNA evidence may well point in a different direction.

You'll never hear the results though, I suspect.

 

[Boston Bees]

I agree interesting that the article says about multiple queen's in the swarms.

This is normal. Swarms often contain multiple queens.

 

[Curly green finger's]

This is normal. Swarms often contain multiple queens.

I've yet to see it but I haven't been beekeeping for long.
Are certain types more likely to carry more than one queen?
Opologies I digress.