There are native bees
- they just are not honey bees
- Bumbles, Sweat Bees and the like. Honey bees are an introduced species in the US. Are you using the term "native" instead of "feral" intentionally?
I mean the kind of honey bee people talk about when they say, "use the wild stock because they're acclimated to your climate"There are native bees- they just are not honey bees
- Bumbles, Sweat Bees and the like. Honey bees are an introduced species in the US. Are you using the term "native" instead of "feral" intentionally?
For openers, honey bees are not native to the Americas, were brought from Europe and then later, Africa. Feral bees can be escaped swarms from domestic bees, or swarms that have lived in the wild for generations. How can you tell the difference?ive had some bad luck with commercial bought queens and was thinking about rearing some queens from feral hives. I know Michael Bush says the F1 hybrids(first offspring) from commercial queens can have bad temperment. I think that's what i'm experiencing right now. All opinions welcome.
Lets straighten out the language a bit. Feral bees are, by definition, bees that are descendants of escaped domestic stocks, which have been able to survive and reproduce. Since natural selection will have operated on the local population, it will be well acclimatised to the area. The bees will often be a lot hardier than their domestic forebears. Since only varroa tolerant bees can thrive unaided, they will also have a good measure of varroa resistance.Feral bees can be escaped swarms from domestic bees, or swarms that have lived in the wild for generations.
It could equally be the case that defensiveness is due to a persistent predator in the locality which has been disuaded by a propensity to a strong response. The gentler 'bloodlines' have been eliminated (or reduced as a proportion of the population).If they are mean, it's probably the African component.
This is similar to a lot of the comments. "Feral" is "just the way I see it." Seriously folks, words have meanings. If we all make up our own meanings for words, then words mean nothing and we might just as well quit trying to communicate.if they swarm and I put them in a hive they are in my apiarie, if they make it across the road and go in a tree there a feral hive. same bees. just the way I see it.
This is where we have to start refining the terms in order to improve our ability to conceive and communicate.Honey bees, however, are not actually domesticated. Despite the fact that they live in our boxes, they remain essentially wild.
They may. Freedom to build the sort of comb they want rather than have a uniform cell size forced upon them might make a difference. There may be other critical or minor but contributory factors.Nor do they change their behavior by living in a tree.