At 08:34 PM 7/9/99 -0700, you wrote:
>So far the bees are staying, until it is time in
>the Fall. If I need to move the bees to another location are there any
>resources I can call on to have the bees relocated to another spot so
>that they can continue their life cycle?
>
No need to move them in the Fall. Bombus will not use the same home two
years in a row. Queens will leave in the Fall and seek out a secure place
to hibernate. In the Spring, they will find a new abandoned mouse or
rodent hole to make their nest in.
>Also, do bumble bees in the Northern California area (we live in Santa
>Cruz) suffer from the mites like other bees in California do? How
>plentiful is the wild population?
>
Bombus do have mite problems just like Apis. I live in Northern Illinois
and Bombus here are quite plentiful, gentle and great pollinators. You
have to work at it pretty hard to get them to sting.
Tom
4 hives in Northern Illinois