10. bee nutriton

8/4/2019 10. Bee Nutriton

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WHATS REQUIRED?

NECTAR (HONEY)NECTAR (HONEY) Source ofSource of

CARBOHYDRATES and ENERGYCARBOHYDRATES and ENERGY

POLLENPOLLEN Protein and fatsProtein and fats


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Honey1. Nectar is main source of

carbohydrates in bees diet.

2.Workers add enzymes

(invertase, glucose oxidase)to nectar during foraging

3. Invertase converts sucrose

to glucose & fructose

4. Glucose oxidase convertglucose to gluconic acid and

hydrogen peroxide (germ

killing properties)


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POLLEN

Provides bees w/ protein, minirals, lipids and vitamins(Herbert & Shimamuki, 1978)

Bees need 10 amino acid obtained from pollen only

Bee colony collects 10-26kg/yr(Wille et al., 1985)


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Processing Pollen into Proteins

1. Pollen is mixed w/ glandular secretions by young bees to

produce bee bread2. Foragers cannot digest pollen directly (Moritz & Creilsheim, 1987)

3. Larva requires 25-37.5 mg protein or 125-187.5 mg pollen

(Hrassnigg and Creilsheim, 2005)


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Common Mistake

Dangerous Assumption: Rainy or dearth

season is over thus NO MORE FEEDING.

Continuous rains may have destroyed the

flower source

Diluted nectar

Overcast skies prevent photosynthesis and

reduce nectar production


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Bee Nutrition

BROOD

1 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 102

Notice the strength &

cluster Thermo Control


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Generally, it takesGenerally, it takes sustainedsustainedwarm weatherwarm weather

andandplenty of sunshineplenty of sunshine for most flowers tofor most flowers to

yield nectaryield nectar


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Remember!!

Food Requirement Dramatically Increase as

Brood Rearing Increases

W

atch out: Hive can easily outrun its reservefood supply.

Just a few cloudy, rainy, or cold days can mean

sudden starvation for the hives of an

inattentive beekeeper.


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Starved Bee Colony

Most bees have died

and fallen to the

bottom of the hive,

some are quivering.

Most of the brood is

uncovered and dead.

The queen is presumed

dead.

Image copyright 2002, by David L. Green


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One for All, All for One

This affliction most

commonly affects the

strongest and best hives. It

is a sad sight to see apowerful hive die or be

devastated by

STARVATIONSTARVATION, just beforethey could have turned

around and begun building

food reserves. Image copyright 2002, by David L. GreenOften the last thing a bee does before

expiring is to crawl into a cell.


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Image copyright 2002, by David L. Green

Some of the brood has been chewed and sucked of body fluids in

an attempt for the adults to survive.


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Aworker bee needs

11 mg of dry sugar each

day (Huang et al., 1998)

This means around 22

ul of sugar syrup per

worker per day

For 30,000 bees it

means 9.9kg/mo

FEEDING NEEDSFEEDING NEEDS


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Collection of Nectar

Sugar concentration of

nectar vary from 5%-75%

Stored in the honey crop

(honey stomach) Average nectar weight in

the crop 25.5 + 15 mg(Calderone & Page, 1992)

Average worker bee weighs120 mg


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When Bees are Starved.

The splits/divide is lost and so with your first

honey crop.

The queen may be damaged (or dead) andneed replacement ASAP.

Brood that appears undamaged may actually

be dead, because the bees did not have the

energy (or population) to keep it warm; it may

be chilled.


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Think About It!Think About It!

Weakened and starving bees may not get

nectar, because they don't have enough sugar

reserves to power their wing muscles.

Weakened and starving bees may not get

nectar, because they don't have enough sugar

reserves to power their wing muscles.


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Determining Food Reserve

HeftingHefting the back of the hive (subjective and

needs some experience)

Pop the topPop the top and look down between theframes. You should be able to see capped

honey on some of the frames.

In evaluating the food reserves NEVER countNEVER count

nectar/honey that isn't cappednectar/honey that isn't capped, because it

can disappear in a day or so.


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Rescue Mission

If you have hives

with no capped

honey FEEDFEED

FEED.

Q

uivering beesmight still be

revived.

If you have hives

with no capped

honey FEEDFEED

FEED.

Q

uivering beesmight still be

revived.


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Famine to Feasting


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STRONG COLONY:AMUST

HEALTHY AND

STRONG COLONY

WELL FEDWITHSYRUPDURING THE

DEARTHPERIOD

Notice the strength &

cluster


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FEEDING SYSTEM

Feeder Box or the

Boardman Feeder

Food storage and

Division board


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Look carefully, the bees says

THANK YOU.


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TOP FEEDER

Lesser hive disturbance

Multi-functional (feeder-cover)

Contain greater volume


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Pollen substitute

3-1-1-1

3 parts soy flour

1 part brewersyeast

1 part skimmed

milk

1 part pollen

Honey/sugar syrup


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Pollen Substitute for Bees

Palatability

Bees will readily consume

Digestibility It is easily digested by bees

Balance

It has the correct amino acid balance and

crude protein


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Much Needed Nourishment


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HAPPY BEEKEEPING

10. bee nutriton

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