Carlos Aparicio asks:
 
>        The question is:  How much time   lives a bee colony?
 
We have a very large feral population on Kangaroo Island as the progeny of
the Ligurian queens introduced in 1881 was encouraged to swarm frequently.
Without this feral population the preservation of the pure Ligurian gene
would be problematic, with only 1100 registered hives on the Island.
Beekeepers rely on being able to mate queens to unrelated drones by moving
to a separate mating apiary.
 
In areas where there are unreliable nectar and pollen sources it is notable
that bees become inbred due to the high mortality rate of feral colonies.
Swarms will always select sites previously occupied by bees, even if only
briefly.  Thus, many tree trunks, branches and cavities are occupied in
Spring only to have the colonies die as the season proceeds.
 
Research into feral bee impact is being carried out by Dr. David Paton of
the Adelaide University.  Many feral hives are monitored and the mortality
rate noted.
 
Some years back it was estimated that honey bees on Kangaroo Island were
colonizing 1 percent of tree hollows required for nesting birds per season.
However at the peak of the previous El Nino drought cycle a nosema outbreak
reduced both feral and commercial hives by up to 50 per cent and it is now
reported that nesting birds are using the spaces previously occupied by bees.
 
Eucalypts flower on a cycle varying from annually to 20 years or so.
Without a reliable nectar/pollen source for the majority of the year, many
hives simply die of starvation.
 
Garth pointed out that continuously used comb would become too dark and
confined for health.  Many hives will die through natural attrition, with
subsequent break down of comb by wax moth (this can occur within 3 weeks in
summer) and subsequent rebuilding by a newly arrived swarm in spring so that
the colony appears to have a continuous life.
 
There are too many variables to whether a hive prospers or not to make
calculating a possible maximum hive life a useful exercise.
 
Betty McAdam
HOG BAY APIARY
Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island
j.h. & e. mcadam<[log in to unmask]
http://kigateway.eastend.com.au/hogbay/hogbay1.htm