Drone Congregation Areas

[Stromnessbees]

As I am keen on the conservation of the dark bee I have become interested in drone congregation areas (let's call them DCAs). In the long run it would be great if we could identify areas which are dominated by native bees and place mating nucs near their DCAs.

At the moment there seems to be little information about Scottish DCAs available, and I wonder if we can get together and create a bit of a database about them. Important points would be location and a description of the topography as well as times of activity and favourable weather conditions.

I have to admit that I have never observed one myself yet, but I feel this is quite a neglected subject in our knowledge about our bees. I also feel that with a bit of publicity we could get other naturalists interested, and more eyes on the lookout would certainly be helpful.

Anybody else interested?
Doris

[gavin]

Little experience myself, but I know a man who does. His DCA is around the tree tops beside and over a stream just to the south of a raised grassy area near a big house. I couldn't have predicted where it would be, despite having read Beowulf Cooper's book where he gives several examples.

Raised areas with a south-facing aspect? The kind of place Picts put their carved stones?!

Perhaps for Orkney and other breezy and bee-sparse places this is an important issue. If you go as far as doing the Karl Showler long pole trick with a cotton wool 'queen' soaked in queen substance, I demand photos for the forum!

[Stromnessbees]

How about a map where we can enter known DCAs?
(I can't see much of a security problem in releasing that kind of information.)

Would it be possible to use a Google map or even Google Earth for that purpose?

Doris

[Calum]

Hi
the problem we have with DCAs here is that all drones go to the same places. You really need bee free areas where you can bring drones and queens to. I would have thought the outer isles / Orkneys / Shetlands would be bee perfect. (sorry just had to).
Calum

[gavin]

.... would be bee perfect. (sorry just had to).

I think that was the first one! Yes, those who strive to keep Amm pure in mixed areas sometimes try to encourage apiary vicinity mating for that reason (letting the bees out in the early evening for example). However if you think that your area is populated by the strain you wish to keep, and especially if drones are sparse, then knowing where the DCAs are may help. I'm told that queens usually fly south on a gently increasing incline, so if that is true (the man who told me may be along to help us out one day) parking the nucs a couple of hundred m to the N might be the best place.

A map would be great if there are enough people around who know of DCAs, but the one I'm talking about would have to remain private as the site is a bit sensitive.

G.

[Stromnessbees]

Hi
the problem we have with DCAs here is that all drones go to the same places. You really need bee free areas where you can bring drones and queens to. I would have thought the outer isles / Orkneys / Shetlands would be bee perfect. (sorry just had to).
Calum

Calum, there are two problems with your suggestion:

Firstly we wouldn't want the traffic of bees to the islands due to the inevitability of importing varroa and maybe other diseases.

Secondly theses mating stations would have to have a great variety of drone colonies, as queens should be mated with drones from as many different colonies as possible.

What kind of bees do you have and do you rear your own queens?

Doris

[Calum]

Hi Doris,

I appreciate your point about the traffic of bees. I have carnica bees, last year I reared 30 queens. Of those I let 20 mate around my bee stand in single frame nucs. The other ten were from an exceptionally good colony I bought a frame of open brood from. I sent them up into the mountains in (the alps) for mating with selected drones from the regional beekeepers association. A setup like that does not exist in scotland but could be a nice project for an area that has no bees at all. - Do Coll or Tiree have any bees at all? That would be a nice day out for all the beekeepers from Mull!

just food for thought

Calum

[Stromnessbees]

Drone flyways (or highways?) - some great information in that article, thanks for posting it, Jon.

I was surprised to read that there were always several DCAs for an apiary, and how much information is already out there. When I have more time I'll try to track down some of the literature quoted there.

Meanwhile the very first drones of the season have made their appearance at my own apiary (which is miles from anybody else's), just in time to see to my supercedure queen which is due for her mating flights next week.

Doris