Beekeeper Safety: Hold off on inspections, etc.
| ▪ | Here is a link to the CDC page Heat and Outdoor Workers. |
| ▪ | Hydrate before you get thirsty and if you feel faint or weak, STOP all activity and get to a cool place. |
| ▪ | Here is the WMUR Heat Report. |
| ▪ | Good video: Heat Exhaustion vs Heat Stroke |
How Hot Before Bees Can't Fly? Here is a link to a University of Maine Cooperative Extension article designed to help land maintenance activities avoid interfering with honey bee activity. It addresses minimum and maximum temperatures for flying: "The optimum temperature for flight activity is 72-77º F, but activity continues up to about 100º F before declining." If bees aren't active this could be why.
Bearding: The most important job in the colony is keeping brood at a temperature that allows for healthy development of the young, an average of 93F degrees. This means thermoregulation or fanning of cooled air when temperatures rise in the brood nest above 96F. Bees bring in water to help cool the air. To increase circulation the main body of worker bees in the hive will crawl out onto a shady hive surface. As long as you follow good apiary location guidelines your bees should have a healthy water source nearby. If not, try keeping a birdbath filled with clean water and stones for them to walk on. Then don't worry about it. They've got this. In extreme situations, your queen may stop laying until temperatures are safe for brood rearing.
Climate Change Study: Here is a link to a study on bees during a simulated heat wave: "In
conclusion, we demonstrated that honeybees could remarkably adapt to
heat waves without a cost at the individual level and on resource flow.
However, ...(they struggle to recover) against additional environmental pressures."
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