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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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From:
Gavin Ramsay <[log in to unmask]>
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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 17 Mar 2008 09:01:56 +0000
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Hi Randy and All

> the bees immediately preferred the new one by about fifty to one!

Perhaps the bees have a need for diversity in their pollen diets and simply tired of the old one?  Could make sense, as each pollen type has its own balance of nutrients and one type may not supply everything.  Nectar is different, as sugar is sugar.

How widespread is the feeding of Chinese pollen?  It it wise?  Pollen loads are created by cementing the loose pollen a bee scrapes off during a foraging trip with nectar from the crop.  Foragers engage in a bit of mouth-to-mouth in the hive, so presumably low numbers of things like Nosema spores will then be dried into these pollen loads.  Is this a possible route for the rapid dissemination of spore-dispersed pathogens worldwide?

all the best

Gavin

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