Boozer bees

[seamuswildflower]

l had some apple cider that went hard and as l was mixing up syrup l put some in. l went to the beeyard and put some with and some without cider. MY GIRLS LIKE TO PARTY! THE SYRUP WITH HARD CIDER WENT DOWN LIKE BEER AT A REDNECK FAMILY REUNION!

[Splatt]

Interesting! I wonder what it was about it that they liked. Did you notice any change in their behavior?

[seamuswildflower]

there are some flowers with fermented nectar so l do not see a problem. l was concerned that the syrup would ferment but it does not stay round long enough

[psfred]

They like the smell of the cider. I had a hive that was lagging and just sipped at syrup until I put some apple cider vinegar in the syrup. They took 9 gallons in a week after than and filled a medium and a half with syrup.

Peter

[jdmidwest]

Dam alkies. I wonder how they handle the alcohol? Do they store it in the honey or consume it for personal use....

[paleophil]

Drunk Bees: A Wholphin Report
By Brent Hoff
http://vimeo.com/23391381

Scientists found that bees enjoy straight ethanol and prefer nectars that are fermented. The scientist in the video claims that some plants, such as the pawpaw (Asimina triloba), use this to their advantage to attract bees to their nectar. Scientists have found evidence that the nectar yeasts responsible for fermentation improve "pollination success, pollen flow and plant fitness" and are beneficial to both the plants and the bees. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2819527/)

When bees become excessive drunkards, "bouncer" bees may evict them from the hive or even bite off their legs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbXJunKCq60

[seamuswildflower]

wow i am so relieved. l was expecting the BEE POLICE FROM BEESOURCE at my door any day to arrest me for contributing to the delinquency of bees. where can l buy bulk apple cider?

[paleophil]

I'm no expert and this is somewhat speculative, but I have noticed multiple reports suggesting that bee colonies tend to die off when they are fed highly-processed and heated foods, like manufactured corn syrup (it is both refined and high-heated). If apple cider is an OK supplemental food for bees, then I would expect that raw (unpasteurized) apple cider would be best. The only places I know of to obtain it in bulk would be local apple orchards.

I'm curious, did you notice any of the reported "bouncer bee" behavior in your hive when they consumed the hard cider, such as pushing drunk bees out of the hive or biting off the legs of repeat offenders?

[Splatt]

I'm curious, did you notice any of the reported "bouncer bee" behavior in your hive when they consumed the hard cider, such as pushing drunk bees out of the hive or biting off the legs of repeat offenders?

Or making them fly in a straight line to the side of the hive?

[seamuswildflower]

l just started doing this but l plan to continue. lf l can not get to an apple grower then l will just use cider vinegar. When l was a kid l used to pick up dropped apples for a farmer. l remember the rotten apples having yellow jackets all over them, sometimes l got stung. l used to pickup 3 to 4 hundred bushels a week after school. l can not remember honey bees then but there must have been. he kept bees

[Gord]

IMG_1405.jpgI have a TBH with a window on my patio.
I often sit down and have a beer and watch the ladies.
Often, I'll pour a ~2" puddle of beer on the landing board.
About 10% will try it.
Once they have a sip, they don't stop, and after ~10 minutes, it's all gone.
It's really neat; you can see their tongues scouring the landing board.
IMG_1402.jpg

[paleophil]

I learned the hard way that bees like beer when I took a swig from a beer can at a picnic and it turned out a bee was in it and stung me on the lip.