Healthy Bees: Managing pests, diseases and other disorders of the honey bee


Book Description

The aim of this book is to provide bee-keepers with a guide to the common pests and diseases of bees. Healthy Bees covers seasonal factors that affect the health of the colony, nutrition, non-infectious disorders, diseases, exotic pests, and strategies to prevent them. Clear photographs to help you recognise and identify pests and diseases, and videos demonstrate collecting samples from your hive. Contents Introduction CHAPTER 1: The honey bee Introduction Lifecycle of the honey bee Castes of bees and their roles in the colony Genetics Inbreeding Sex hormones in the hive CHAPTER 2: Colony size Introduction Colony size varies with seasons Nectar flow and brood rearing Managing bees in winter Managing bees in spring CHAPTER 3: Nutrition Food for bees Feeding sugar to honey bees Plants as poisons CHAPTER 4: Effects of seasons and location Seasons Location CHAPTER 5: Disease and disorder Health of bees is important Non-infectious disorders Causes of disease CHAPTER 6: Strategies to prevent disease Be alert Inspect the hive Comb replacement program Barrier system Best practice CHAPTER 7: Diseases of the honey bee brood American foulbrood European foulbrood Chalkbrood Sacbrood Kashmir bee virus Black queen cell virus Prepare a larval smear for diagnosis CHAPTER 8: Diseases of adult honey bees Nosema disease Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) CHAPTER 9: Hive pests Small hive beetle (SHB) Wax moth Other pests CHAPTER 10: Exotic pests Varroa mite Sugar shaking to detect external parasites Tracheal mite Tropilaelaps mite Predatory hornets Large hive beetles CHAPTER 11: Surveillance and response to exotic pests and disease Surveillance Response to surveillance alert CHAPTER 12: Honey bees and the law Introduction Beekeeper registration Abandoned or neglected hives The legal requirement to notify Biosecurity Code of Practice Bonus Chapter: Testing for Hygienic Behaviour Liquid Nitrogen-Killed Brood Test Appendix 1: Glossary Appendix 2: The pollen story Not all pollen is equal No pollen and the colony dies Pollen substitutes Sugar syrup, brood rearing, pollen foraging References Appendix 3: Competencies supported by this publication




AgGuide


Book Description




Status of Pollinators in North America


Book Description

Pollinators-insects, birds, bats, and other animals that carry pollen from the male to the female parts of flowers for plant reproduction-are an essential part of natural and agricultural ecosystems throughout North America. For example, most fruit, vegetable, and seed crops and some crops that provide fiber, drugs, and fuel depend on animals for pollination. This report provides evidence for the decline of some pollinator species in North America, including America's most important managed pollinator, the honey bee, as well as some butterflies, bats, and hummingbirds. For most managed and wild pollinator species, however, population trends have not been assessed because populations have not been monitored over time. In addition, for wild species with demonstrated declines, it is often difficult to determine the causes or consequences of their decline. This report outlines priorities for research and monitoring that are needed to improve information on the status of pollinators and establishes a framework for conservation and restoration of pollinator species and communities.




Honey Bee Medicine for the Veterinary Practitioner


Book Description

An essential guide to the health care of honey bees Honey Bee Medicine for the Veterinary Practitioner offers an authoritative guide to honey bee health and hive management. Designed for veterinarians and other professionals, the book presents information useful for answering commonly asked questions and for facilitating hive examinations. The book covers a wide range of topics including basic husbandry, equipment and safety, anatomy, genetics, the diagnosis and management of disease. It also includes up to date information on Varroa and other bee pests, introduces honey bee pharmacology and toxicology, and addresses native bee ecology. This new resource: Offers a guide to veterinary care of honey bees Provides information on basic husbandry, examination techniques, nutrition, and more Discusses how to successfully handle questions and 'hive calls' Includes helpful photographs, line drawings, tables, and graphs Written for veterinary practitioners, veterinary students, veterinary technicians, scientists, and apiarists, Honey Bee Medicine for the Veterinary Practitioner is a comprehensive and practical book on honey bee health.




Honey Bee Colony Health


Book Description

This book summarizes the current progress of bee researchers investigating the status of honey bees and possible reasons for their decline, providing a basis for establishing management methods that maintain colony health. Integrating discussion of Colony Collapse Disorder, the chapters provide information on the new microsporidian Nosema ceranae pathogens, the current status of the parasitic bee mites, updates on bee viruses, and the effects these problems are having on our important bee pollinators. The text also presents methods for diagnosing diseases and includes color illustrations and tables.







Top-Bar Beekeeping


Book Description

Top-Bar Beekeeping is an offering designed to encourage beekeepers around the world to keep bees naturally by providing beekeeping basics, hive management and the utilization of top-bar hives. In recent years, beekeepers have had to face tremendous challenges, from pests, such as varroa and tracheal mites, to the mysterious but even more devastating phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Yet in backyards and on rooftops all over the world, bees are being raised successfully, even without antibiotics, miticides, or other chemical inputs. More and more organically-minded beekeepers are now using top-bar hives, in which the shape of the interior resembles a hollow log. Long lasting and completely biodegradable, a top-bar hive made of untreated wood allows bees to build comb naturally rather than simply filling prefabricated foundation frames in a typical box hive with added supers. Top-bar hives yield slightly less honey but produce more beeswax than a typical Langstroth box hive. Regular hive inspection and the removal of old combs helps to keep bees healthier and naturally disease-free. Top-Bar Beekeeping provides complete information on hive management and other aspects of using these innovative hives. All home and hobbyist beekeepers who have the time and interest in keeping bees intensively should consider the natural, low-stress methods outlined in this book. It will also appeal to home orchardists, gardeners, and permaculture practitioners who look to bees for pollination as well as honey or beeswax.




Bee AgSkills


Book Description

A clear, practical guide to beekeeping produced by a team of experienced apiary officers from NSW DPI. Includes how to use a bee smoker and work safely with bees, how to maintain hives, how to catch a swarm, how to remove and extract honey, how to replace a queen bee, and common health and pest problems in beehives. With step-by-step photographs, clear diagrams, and a linked glossary of terms. CONTENTS Introduction Foreword Background knowledge General safety precautions Select bee site Assemble and maintain a hive Obtaining bees (buy hives) Obtaining bees (buy packages) Light and extinguish a bee smoker Open, inspect and close a hive Move a hive Seasonal management Catch a swarm Re-queen Identify flora for honey production Judging field conditions Remove honey Extract honey Legal considerations for an apiary Health problems and pests in the hive Reducing swarming behaviour Buying second-hand hives and equipment Quality assurance Industry structure and contacts Glossary Managing Work Health and Safety risks Check your skill Further reading




The Australian Beekeeping Manual


Book Description

The book is aimed at both the novice and experienced beekeeper in Australia and explains in detail the steps required to manage colonies of bees. Supported by over 350 photographs and drawings, each action to be performed is explained in detail with photographs showing the steps as well as the final result. Many potential beekeepers are unclear about the equipment they need to buy and how to obtain their first colony of bees. The first chapters in the book explain in detail the equipment needed as well as equipment that may be useful later on as their confidence and experience grows. The chapter ‘Your First Bees’ explains how to obtain bees, where to locate them in the garden, and the basics of colony management. In addition to chapters on keeping bees, there are detailed chapters on the life cycle of the honey bee, extracting honey, the bee-friendly garden, entering honey in competitions, native bees and rearing queens. The result is a comprehensive manual that includes material not available in other Australian, North American or European books and is the ultimate Australian reference source.




Natural Beekeeping


Book Description

Whether you are a novice looking to get started with bees, an experienced apiculturist looking for ideas to develop an integrated pest-management approach, or someone who wants to sell honey at a premium price, this is the book you’ve been waiting for. Now revised and updated with new resources and including full-color photos throughout, Natural Beekeeping offers all the latest information in a book that has already proven invaluable for organic beekeepers. The new edition offers the same holistic, sensible alternative to conventional chemical practices with a program of natural hive management, but offers new sections on a wide range of subjects, including: The basics of bee biology and anatomy Urban beekeeping Identifying and working with queens Parasitic mite control Hive diseases Also, a completely new chapter on marketing provides valuable advice for anyone who intends to sell a wide range of hive products. Other chapters include: Hive Management Genetics and Breeding The Honey Harvest The Future of Organic Beekeeping Ross Conrad brings together the best “do no harm” strategies for keeping honeybees healthy and productive with nontoxic methods of controlling mites; eliminating American foulbrood disease without the use of antibiotics; selective breeding for naturally resistant bees; and many other detailed management techniques, which are covered in a thoughtful, matter-of-fact way.