Bumblebees

[grindle]

is that the verroa mite @willow ?

[SueA]

I don't think Varroa goes for bumblebees grindle but they do get mites/ticks, I've seen the odd one or two on bumbles but they don't usually harm them unless they get a big infestation, not sure if that would be what was making your bee poorly @willow, I've found a couple of bumbles dead on the lawn recently with no sign of anything wrong with them, I suppose they could have been got at by the local cats though. Apparently if you find a bee struggling with lots of mites you can brush them off or 'dip' the bee in tepid water:-
Bumblebee mites
Removing bumblebee mites

[Deleted]

I was surprised to learn that not all mites are harmful. Fancy mites hitching a lift like this!

[SueA]

Saw the first bumblebee of the year in our garden the other day, I think it's a bufftail, it flew in & out of all the crocuses along the lawn & spent a lot of time headfirst & upside down!

[roofgardener]

Believe it or not, there was a bumble bee bumbling around my parents garden about 2 weeks ago !
I hope it survived all the snow.

[sweetpea]

Mar 26, 2018 14:22:48 GMT roofgardener said:

Believe it or not, there was a bumble bee bumbling around my parents garden about 2 weeks ago !
I hope it survived all the snow.

Also saw one about then too. thought it was looking for a nesting site as there were no flowers nearby. just never got round to mentioning it.

[SueA]

Another big bumblebee in the garden yesterday, I looked it up & it's a tree bumblebee, bombus hypnorum, which are relatively new to this country ( about 2001 they appeared in the south), I think we might have had some nesting briefly in the ivy tree a year or two ago. Saw the first honeybee in the garden yesterday as well, hope the ones you saw roofgardener, sweetpea have survived, they probably went back into hiding when the snow arrived, I think these new ones may have to hide as well this week according to the weather reports.

[sweetpea]

Good pics SueA Is your camera attached to you somehow?

[roofgardener]

Mar 27, 2018 11:57:15 GMT sweetpea said:

Good pics SueA Is your camera attached to you somehow?

You mean... your's ISN'T ?

[SueA]

Mar 27, 2018 11:57:15 GMT sweetpea said:

Good pics SueA Is your camera attached to you somehow?

Yes sweetpea, surgically attached! If I'm working outside I usually take my camera out & leave it on the patio table in case I spot anything, other than that it's often on the table by the patio doors, beside me on the sofa or in my handbag if we're going out. I have been known to look out of the patio windows & shout butterfly/bumblebee/bullfinch/jay/u.f.o. etc. & then run off to grab my camera!
P.S. also have my O.H.'s old phone now so can take pics. with that as well if I need to.

[sweetpea]

Have you actually seen a UFO then SueA ?
Believe it or not, I have and logged it in my observing book.
A friend of mine who is a plane anorak took a picture of one from a plane when he was flying back from America. he had it confirmed somewhere that the pic wasn't a fake and nobody knew what it was.
In my case I was out doing my astronomy thing with binoculars at the time and saw what I can only describe as 3 delta winges shapes flying in formation very high and fast, no sound and no movement so not birds.
No pics I'm afraid and no independent confirmation. Anyway I know what I saw just don't know what it was

[SueA]

No sweetpea, I was only joking, I've never seen anything that I can't find an explanation for but I'm always looking at the skies just in case.