Why bother with the "British bee" ?

[Poly Hive]

P - Were you involved with the ScotBee project? A Scottish beekeeper has been asked for the SICAMM conference to summarise the data collected by the Stoakleys. Some of us might try to top up that study with a little bit of extra data as there are plenty of apparently Amm stock still around.[/vid]

Not sure if I was Gavin as the Stokleys, plural came to a very untimey end quite a few years ago. Yes I attended the BIBBA meeting at the Stokleys and near cried at what was said there. Not sure of the time but must have been about 1994/5/6 ish.

As for ScotBee? Never hard of it and I am still an SBA member. Mentioned to a certain person today that the SBA are a damn sight more democratic too.

What does SICAMM stand for?

PH

 

[gavin]

Admin - I think that you are jumping on me unfairly.

It looks like my views are not very different to Admins and the same as yours Jim. OK then, just to be clear I did *not* intend to give the impression that this is a pro-imports forum. What I was trying to say - no doubt clumsily - was that there is a stronger pro-import voice here than elsewhere and I didn't express it well. Am I being unfair in that? In no way was I trying to pigeon-hole the membership of this forum and I never thought for a minute that this forum is uniformly pro or anti anything. I know people posting on here who are Amm enthusiasts.

the forum and its membership is liquid not a solid mass like the BBKA forum.

So, you wanted to scold me for 'pigeon-holing a whole forum' yet you write that?

Yes, there are many voices here with different views on beekeeping, and that is a good thing.

Peace.

G.

 

[gavin]

Hi PH

Can't tell you what language this is - Latin?

Societas Internationalis pro Conservatione Apis melliferae melliferae

http://www.bibba.com/sicamm_2009.html

It sounds like an interesting meeting. Even though I'm not an out and out Amm enthusiast I might go along.

Do you know John Durkacz? He is the guy who has been volunteered to speak on John Stoakley's data (which comes from that project, but I know little more). This morning I was kindly sent some bee samples from Wester Ross and I'm looking forward to seeing what they look like down a microscope.

best wishes

Gavin

 

[BKF Admin]

Admin - I think that you are jumping on me unfairly.

It looks like my views are not very different to Admins and the same as yours Jim. OK then, just to be clear I did *not* intend to give the impression that this is a pro-imports forum. What I was trying to say - no doubt clumsily - was that there is a stronger pro-import voice here than elsewhere and I didn't express it well. Am I being unfair in that? In no way was I trying to pigeon-hole the membership of this forum and I never thought for a minute that this forum is uniformly pro or anti anything. I know people posting on here who are Amm enthusiasts.



So, you wanted to scold me for 'pigeon-holing a whole forum' yet you write that?

Yes, there are many voices here with different views on beekeeping, and that is a good thing.

Peace.

G.

Reading your reply I can see I was a little unfair on you by jumping up and down in my post.

I was being a little to defensive of the forum,sorry Gavin.

Admin.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I like any bee's,as long as they over winter well and work hard filling supers,as thats the reason i have them for,to produce honey.

 

[gavin]

No probs Admin. Nice of you to say sorry - that is one thing that doesn't happen elsewhere.



G.

 

[Poly Hive]

That name rings a vague bell Gavin from years ago.

BIBBA came north to Perthshire, and propounded thier theories of the further notrh the longer heairs and the discoidal shift goes to the left and so on.

Then, what blew me away was that these senior personnel who had been preaching this stuff for years and years, said.

"This is our first visit to Scotland". I near fell off my chair.

If you have a belief or theory then great but if it involves Northing then I would suggest Caithness was the logical starting point. Not surely Surrey?

I think that is when I truly realised how amateur British Beekeeping really was and is.

PH

 

[gavin]

Well PH, I know what you mean. However, don't you think that this is a good time to be optimistic for beekeeping? Record numbers of new entrants, a govt N and S of the border that seems to want a new partnership (that's what these bee health strategies are about), beekeepers probably better informed than ever before and certainly with good access to information and advice thanks to the internet (yes, Admin, including this forum ).

I'm doing a bee display today and need to stock an observation hive (local mongrels!), so better get going ....

G.