Since the formation of our Cairns Branch we have had a lot of interest on Face-book with 150 people joining our page, and about 35 members also joining the ANBA. We held a very successful meeting in November with Tim Heard who came up to Cairns and gave an introductory talk on Native Bees and also demonstrated a brood lift from an old T. hockingsi hive.
Following that meeting Stewart and I have rescued two hives of native bees in a water meter and electricity access pit. We are learning as we go, and these were our first solo rescues. Both hives, a clypearis and a sapiens, were success-fully re-housed and three weeks later were both very active complete with guard bees at their entrances. It was not possible to leave the rescue box at the site of the first rescue and as a result we were not able to collect all the bees that would have returned to the site of the hive at dusk. It is always beneficial to be able to leave the rescue box at the site of the original hive until all returning bees have been collected. Bee numbers are a very important aspect of a successful relocation. Unfortunately, this is not always possible.
Mandy Sapper
Secretary/Treasurer, Cairns Branch – Australian Native Bee Assoc
Photos of the two hives that needed relocation.
From: Stewart Clarke sclarkehk@gmail.com, Chair and Representative to ANBA
Cairns Native Bee Association Facebook group,
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1269746467098269/
