Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Edinburgh is buzzing with life
The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology at Edinburgh has invested in a community apiary of two colonies of bees. Four staff members / students were sent on a beekeeping course before the installation of the hives. Over the summer of 2010, the beekeepers fed the bees a concentrated sugar solution to build up the strength of the young colonies: about a kilogramme of sugar daily per hive. Two other hives, owned by local beekeepers, have also been installed on the site.
Last year, an inspection of the hives revealed that the colonies had grown to a healthy size and had laid down supplies of honey for the winter. In the spring of this year, the colonies swarmed. Fortunately the CEH beekeepers were on site and successfully captured the swarms in cardboard boxes. These swarms were given to local beekeepers and introduced to empty hives (one of which is on the CEH site). The remaining virgin queen in one of the CEH hives failed to mate in flight (most likely due to a sudden drop in temperature in May). With no new eggs being laid, this colony has unfortunately not survived. The beekeepers plan to recolonise this hive in the spring. The second colony is doing well.
Bees have become a frequent topic of conversation at Edinburgh, where several other members of staff are beekeepers at home.
Pollinating insects such as bees are vital to crop production. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) have a social structure, produce many biologically active compounds, such as pheromones and allomones, and can also detect many floral and vegetative signals. This signalling chemistry is essential for their survival and is likely to play an important role in their communication and behaviour.
There is recent evidence that air pollution can interrupt or weaken chemical communication among insects and this is one of the suspected factors leading to colony collapse disorder. Recent progress in analytical techniques has enabled chemical compounds to be monitored in real time at the sensitivity of a few molecules per trillion, but this comes nowhere near the sensitivity of bee antennae, which are able to detect one molecule of a certain pheromone per sextillion.
However, research on pollutant interference with chemical signalling is now becoming a possibility. CEH research on bees is carried out by Claire Carvell and Matt Heard in Wallingford and by Catherine Fiedler in Edinburgh.
The hives have been located close to the community orchard, simultaneously providing an early source of blossom for the bees and aiding pollination of the fruit trees. We hope the first honey will be extracted from the new hives next summer. The apple crop in the community orchard also benefits from compost from the kitchen waste.
Encouraged by Edinburgh's initiative, staff at Wallingford are looking into setting up their own apiary. A great initiative for biodiversity and one that lets us look forward to CEH honey tastings and sweet treats!