What Is Summer Nectar Dearth
Summer nectar dearth is defined as a lack of nectar-producing flowers for honeybees. Normally, bees store pollen and honey for the winter, but many bees, particularly active bees, eat it quickly, or robbers steal food, resulting in a shortage.
Nectar scarcity is commonly referred to as a winter food shortage, but in the extreme heat of summer, flowers may not produce a significant amount of nectar, and bees suffer as a result.
On the other hand, nectar is produced in some flowers but is inaccessible to bees, exacerbating the situation because beekeepers assume everything is fine and fail to notice starving honeybees. As a result, beekeepers should be aware of this phenomenon and how to recognize and manage it wisely, as outlined in this article.
Signs of a nectar dearth
To detect summer nectar dearth, keep an eye on the busy bees and observe their behavior. Furthermore, these indicators of a nectar shortage will aid in determining whether it is bees’ routine activity or a food shortage.
What happens to bees during a nectar dearth?
These basic identification signs demonstrate what happens to bees during a nectar shortage. One of the best indicators that your bee colony is under stress is robbing stored food or nectar resources. When a stronger bee colony runs out of food, it attacks the weaker hives and seizes their stored food. Other stranger bees benefit from this fight as well, gathering as much food as they can. When robbing begins, a colony may lose its food supply; fighting and dying may also become widespread, killing the queen bees.
Strong bee colonies do not always have the winning treat; sometimes it is destroyed when the workers of another strong colony attack, and then bees from multiple hives arrive to take down the strongest among them.
If multiple bees hover near the hive entrance and do not go inside or fight with other bees, this indicates robbing activity. During a summer nectar shortage, robbing activity can cause hives to be destroyed and honey stores to be completely depleted.
Almost every beekeeper is familiar with bee colonies and their behavior, but they become more active and vocal in unexpected circumstances such as nectar scarcity.
To avoid this dreadful situation, you could also use aggression or confusion. If you work in the hive in this situation, bees will perceive you as a robber and will become defensive to attack. Guard cells normally detect danger and warn other bees by releasing pheromones with a more banana-like odor, and they can attack.
Normally, bees visit flowers, sip nectar, and return to the hive to process it. However, if you notice bees visiting flowers and not returning to their colony, this is a sign of a summer nectar shortage. Bees come to the flowers in desperate search of food and then leave empty-handed. So, don’t think that because there are blooming flowers, the bees have enough nectar to feed the entire colony.
When inspecting hives, keep an eye out for stored food; if you don’t see any, bees have probably eaten it and there isn’t any more. A lack of larvae or eggs, on the other hand, indicates that your queen has left or is not producing well.
When the hive’s food supply is low, the queen bee modifies her behavior to conserve energy and store food. You should also be aware that bees can eat larvae for protein while going about their daily tasks.
During periods of severe nectar scarcity, bees forage for food and can be found in unexpected places. They take off in various directions, flying low in the grass or sitting on your food or water. These foragers may also be seen visiting bird feeders or flying over treetops.
Management of Nectar Dearth Scarcity
When you realize that bees are suffering from summer nectar shortages, you should take immediate action and manage the situation without expecting the worst.
You should take immediate action to manage summer nectar death so that bee colonies do not die:
As an emergency response, feed bees 1:1 sugar water syrup. However, keep in mind that feeding bees in times of scarcity can exacerbate the problem. When bees are excited to find food, the scent of food can attract robbers. As a result, avoid spilling any syrup on or near the hive, which will aggravate the situation. Because an entrance feeder attracts robbers, use an enclosed hive top feeder.
Whether or not you feed the bees, robbers can attack and put your hive at risk because it is more difficult for your bees to defend two or more entrances, so it is best to close every smallest entrance. Close the upper entrance and use a screened inner cover with screened ventilation ports if upper ventilation is required. Likewise, the robbing screen is effective for small or weak honey.
- Do not use essential oils or other products to lure bees.
- Planting summer-flowering plants
Conclusion
Summer nectar dearth causes great stress and danger to bees. You may not notice it at first but observing bee activity can lead to the conclusion that something is wrong, and you can manage it with minimal effort.
