Conservation of Stingless bees When you think about conservation in our society it is almost absent. This is something that when you think about is very concerning to me. No native culture threw away the idea of conservation, in fact each culture used to have a way to preserve what they had. When I thought…
Exchange worker bees between colonies Advanced Exchanging workers between colonies is a great thing to learn how to do! You can boost weak colonies, help create new colonies and provide more help to colonies that need it. This method requires knowledge and understanding of bees and for this reason its placed under the advanced…
Stingless bee basics- Types of stingless bees Types of stingless bees most commonly kept One thing people might want to see is a few of the types of bees that people keep in boxes. Have a look in the video below as Dean Haley takes us for a tour inside some of his hives. …
Stingless bee basics- Where to locate your hive Where to locate your hive is something you will need to consider when you get your first hive. Have a look at this little video for a few tips on where to place your hive when you bring it home. Some people build special stands with…
Stingless bee basics- Monitoring bee hives Monitoring bee hives is one way to learn heaps more about your bees. From seeing queens do dances to new bees hatch. If you have the time I recommend installing a panel to see your bees. Check out the video to see inside some hives and a…
Bees in the cold part 3 Guest post written by Dean Haley In this blog post I dig deeper into the properties of wooden boxes and foam insulation. We build an insulated cover and I test this with bees in Applethorpe QLD with temperatures as low as -2.4C In bees in the…
Bees in the cold Guest post written by Dean Haley Stingless bees are widely regarded as being unable to control nest temperature like honey bees do. For the vast majority of stingless bees this is very true. Some species however, such as our T.carbonaria and A.australis extend into temperate areas with colder Winters and frosts.…
Interview with Alan and John Waters Today I had the pleasure to meet with two long time stingless bee keepers who happen to be brothers, Alan and John Waters. Both Alan and John keep a variety of species including Tetragonula carbonaria, Tetragonula hockingsi and Austroplebia australis. Alan and John demonstrated a vertical…
Interview with Kevin Stiller Today I met with Kevin Stiller! Kevin is a man who I can tell has a lot of native bee knowledge. He has kept honey bees for 48 years and only recently given it away. His interest with native bees however remains strong and it shows. Kevin is retired…
Interview and lessons from Allan Beil Recently Dean and I went to visit Allan Beil. We spent a couple of days learning from this very kind, helpful man. Allan is a conservationist and has helped many scientists find the information they need about native bees. If you have read a scientific article…