#beesanctuaryireland

Mornin’.

Damp one.

First storm of the season passing through here.

Broadband hasn’t run to the cellar yet.
Yet.

#rain #storm #wicklow
#beesanctuaryireland

Late?
Only in full speed.
In slo-mo we’re actually early.
Don’t think about it - just go with it.😊🙄

#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

#271.
#270 cont’d.

This use of antennae by bumblebees to ‘communicate’ with other bees in the colony by touching their antennae to the antennae of another bee is referred to as antennation.
It’s kinda like a bee handshake.🐝🤝🐝

#bees #bumblebees
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary #vegan #nature
#organic #disruptive

It’s back!
Sorry we’ve been so light on here for a while. Only so many hours in the day and so much to do!

#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

#269.

Inside the narrow waist (petiole) of #bumblebees cooler blood pumped from the abdomen is heated up as it passes warm blood returning from the head and thorax.
This process is known as ‘counter current heat exchange’.

#bees
#beesanctuaryireland
#savingbees
#nature #sanctuary
#organic #vegan #disrupt

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.

#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.

#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary

Mornin’.

Ivy busy here on The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland today.

Providing #vital #forage for a multitude of insects.

If you’ve got some in your patch check it out…and leave it be.

#ivy #butterfly #redadmiral
#nature #forage #autumn
#bees #hoverflies
#beesanctuaryireland

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.

#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary

Mornin’.

#onesecondbee

Bees to go…

#onesecondnature
#beequick
#bees #nature
#science #fun #beesanctuaryireland

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.

#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary

@bbsmooth
Speaking of bees sleeping on flowers, have you read the very informative thread of The Bee Guy about that topic?

https://mastodon.social/@thebeeguy@mastodon.ie/110809291967503233

#beesanctuaryireland

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.

#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland
#sanctuary

Here’s a
#MondayMorningMoment
with #nature here on
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.
Take a moment.

#pause

Go do some #good.
Have the best week you can.
If you’re not having a good week - tell someone.
And if someone tells you -
Listen.
Really #listen.
#mentalhealth
#wellbeing
#beesanctuaryireland

Mornin’.

Gentle on my mind.

‘And it's knowing I'm not shackled
By forgotten words and bonds
And the ink stains that are dried upon some line
That keeps you in the back roads by the rivers of my memory
That keeps you ever #gentle on my mind..’

#bumblebee #muskmallow
#nature #beesanctuaryireland
#beesanctuary

I bet they’re asleep in New York…
I bet they’re asleep all over America…
Of all the thistles, in all the meadows, in all the world, she flies onto mine...

Goodnight folks.

Dream like they used to.

#bees #butterflies #goodnight #dream #beesanctuaryireland

Spent a lovely few hours here on the bee sanctuary recently in the company of the gentleman that is Keith Duggan.
The results of our chat are in the Irish Times Magazine today.
Huge genuine thanks to Keith and Ciara Kenny at @irishtimes for telling our story. And of course my partner in crime @thebeegirl for the images.
For #bees.
Always!
🙏🏼
#beesanctuary #vegan #organic
#nature #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland #naturereserve
#naturebasedsolutions #climate

Front row seat.
Nature.

#nature #naturephotography
#naturebasedsolutions #bees #beesanctuaryireland #wicklow
#naturereserve #vegan #organic

We had a couple of dodgy moments where this owlet got stranded away from the nest box (trying to fly before ready) and had to be assisted back to the box. Seems to be getting the hang of it now!
Shows the value of having people on-site full time and fully engaged.
Nature needs a helping hand.

#barnowls #owls #nature #naturephotography #birds
#birdwatching #wicklow #beesanctuaryireland
#helpinghand

Hope this provides a little bit of insight and creates a little more #empathy towards these wonderful creatures.

Thanks for reading.

Please share to spread further the knowledge.
#boost

And please do still dream of sleeping in #flowers.

Have a great one!

#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland
#vegan #organic #nature
16/16

…(although fed better as larvae & then not tasked with contributing to the nest as adults) live a lonely homeless life constantly seeking a mate which most never find. And the final kicker - they never produce sons and never get to meet the daughters they do help produce.
15/16
#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland

All females develop a stinger but the equivalent part of the body in males develops into the genital capsule.
When males raise that middle leg to warn you to back off it’s just a bluff with no sting to back it up.
So when it comes to #bumblebees the males…
14/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

…than 10%) actually get to mate. The good news is that unlike male honey bee drones who only mate once, male bumblebees can and do mate more than once and don’t die in or because of the act! When it comes to mating, for male #bumblebees, size does matter - 11/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

…specific height preferences at which they patrol spreading their queen attracting scent. Some work their magic in the tree tops while others are more down to earth! Despite mating being their raison d’être the sad fact is that very few males (estimates put it at less…
10/16
#bumblebees #bees #beesanctuaryireland

…patrolling for prospective mates and foraging. They then spend their lonely nights sleeping on or in flowers - the temperature in some flowers at the base near the nectar source can be up to 10ºC above outside temperatures.

Depending on the species male #bumblebees have…
9/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

…to avoid inbreeding (take note some humans 😂).
This is where the ‘flower sleeping’ starts. Having no homes these males will now spend their days actively seeking a new queen to mate with and food to sustain themselves. They will travel up to 17 kilometres in a single day…8/16
#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland

…for themselves.
Once mature they leave the nest. Unlike workers and queens on leaving the nest they don’t perform learning flights to memorise its location but fly directly away never looking back and never to return. They will disperse far from the nest - up to 6 miles -
7/16
#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland

…mother the queen. When developing as larvae they require more food and for a longer time period than female worker larvae. Ironically later in their short lives males will never forage for pollen and nectar to contribute to the nest but concentrate on foraging for nectar…
6/16
#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland

…and their apparent penchant for overnighting in flowers.

Male #bumblebees are produced by the queen fairly late in the nest cycle - mid to late summer. Males develop from unfertilised eggs - they have no father - and 100% of their genes will be in common with their…
5/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

…foraging in inclement weather or too late & losing light, low energy & natural end of life. But at this time of year - mid to late summer - you may notice a big increase in ‘flower sleepers’ and most of these will likely be males. So let’s take a look at male #bumblebees..
4/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

They spend their short lives seeking sugar and a mate.
Most don’t get to mate.
Those that do never meet their offspring.
No male has a son.
Oh and they can’t sting!

#Bumblebees sometimes sleep/overnight on flowers. And for a number of reasons including getting caught out…
3/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

Spoiler alert:
To sleep on a flower may appear romantic and magical but the reality can seem more tragic than magic for the bumblebees involved.

Flower sleeping #bumblebees are primarily males.
They don’t have a dad.
Once mature, males leave the nest and never return.
2/16
#bees #beesanctuaryireland

We’ve had a lot of people enquiring about and commenting on #bumblebees asleep on #flowers, especially at this time of year, so here’s a quick (long)🙄 thread explaining what’s going on.

Please #boost so more are more informed.
Thanks good people.
#bees #beesanctuaryireland
#vegan #organic #advocacy
1/16

The underside.

The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.

Green orb weaver spider on scabious.

#nature #naturephotography
#naturebasedsolutions
#photography #spider #scabious #bees #beesanctuaryireland

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 217.

More energy for reproduction if not fighting disease?
Reduced infection improving forage effectiveness?
Research still has to find the answers to why #sunflowers in #bumblebee diet seems to mean more queens produced.

#bees #bumblebees #science
#nature #naturebasedsolutions
#sunflowers #beesanctuaryireland
#organic #vegan

Mornin’.

Impatient bee!

You know the type.🙄

Thistle didn’t even get a chance to open properly.

#bumblebees #nature
#bees #beesanctuaryireland
#thistle #wildflower #organic
#vegan #wild #naturereserve
#naturebasedsolutions #climate

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 216.

The number of queens a #bumblebee colony produces is a good indicator of the health of the colony.
Research found that increasing levels of #sunflower pollen in a colony diet sees the colony rear 30% more queens.

#bees #bumblebees
#beesanctuaryireland
#nature #organic #vegan
#naturebasedsolutions

Honeysuckle (or Woodbine depending on your own particular preference).

The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.

Bees by day.
Moths by night.

#nature #wildflowers
#honeysuckle #woodbine
#beesanctuaryireland
#NaturePhotography
#photography #bees #moths

Ooh don't you know how sweet and wonderful life can bee…

#bees #bumblebees
#wildflowers #nature #beesanctuaryireland
#organic #vegan #climate
#naturebasedsolutions
#muskmallow

Mornin’.

Soft one.

As they say around these parts.

#summer
#Ireland
#rain
#beesanctuaryireland

Nature clinging on…

Tufted Vetch on The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.

#nature #wildflowers #beesanctuaryireland
#vegan #organic #tuftedvetch
#naturephotography

Old Fence Post.
Receding into nature.
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.

#nature #naturephotography
#naturebasedsolutions
#photography #beesanctuaryireland

#Cinnabar #moth #caterpillars on #ragwort here this week.

First noticed a small number here about three years ago.

This year they are everywhere.

Ragwort - a much maligned #wildflower - is the larval food plant of this magnificent moth.

Delighted to see them thrive here.

#nature
#beesanctuaryireland

After a worryingly slow start this year from an insect point of view - which was being reported to us from all over - things have definitely picked up here on The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland over the past couple of weeks.

Are you noticing the same?

#bees #insects #nature
#summer #beesanctuary
#beesanctuaryireland #naturephotography
#naturebasedsolutions

Better Days Bridge.
The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland.

Photo courtesy: @thebeegirl

#betterdays #bridge #beesanctuaryireland
#nature #photography

Mornin’.

Would you look at the corbiculae on this wee red arsed #bumblebee foraging on knapweed here on The Bee Sanctuary of Ireland earlier.

Now that’s some serious pollen transportation.

Quick bee fact: A full pollen basket can contain over one million pollen grains.

#bees #beesanctuaryireland
#nature #naturephotography
#bumblebees #vegan #organic
#knapweed #wildflowers

Mornin’.

People asking us about the very small #bumblebees they’ve encountered (if they’re lucky this year!😔) over the past few weeks.
Wanting to know if they are a specific species.
So here’s a brief thread to explain what they are.
Please #boost if you find it interesting.
🙏🏼🐝
1/9

#bees #nature #beesanctuary
#beesanctuaryireland #naturephotography #insects
#caring #education

Foxglove.

Don’t need a reason.

Just foxglove.

Squander twenty seconds with this one. Go on - be wild!

#foxglove #wildflower
#beefood #nature #wild
#beesanctuaryireland
#NaturePhotography #bees

#WorldBeeDay Challenge.

I challenge you to watch this brief clip of a #miningbee grooming whilst perched on the tip of my finger and not find yourself smiling and feeling good.

This is what we are losing.
This.

Want to do something about it?
I do.

#WorldBeeDay2023
#bees #beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary #nature
#naturephotography

Mornin’.

To live amongst trees is a privilege…
But shouldn’t be a rarity.

Stop cutting them down.

#nature #birds #bees #trees
#beesanctuaryireland #pause
#birdsong #naturereserve #vegan #organic

Love the way she stretches out on the leaf her back legs behind her holding on to the leaf edge.
No fear.
No self awareness.
Nothing but that moment in the warm morning sun on a leaf that was made to fit her.
Pure #nature at her best.
#bees #bumblebees #beesanctuaryireland #naturephotography

#ABeeC

D is for…

Dumbledore, Dandelions and Don’t.

#Dumbledore - an old English word for #bumblebee!

#Dandelions - #flowers not #weeds and vital early forage for #bees.

Don’t - don’t use #poisons like #glyphosate in your #garden. They’re designed to harm and kill.
And they do!

#beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary
#nature #naturephotography #science #fun #facts #naturebasedsolutions

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 154.

Plastic has become so ubiquitous in the planet’s #environment that #leafcutterbees have been observed using discarded #plastic instead of leaves in the construction of their nests. This is not positive #evolution.

#bees #beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary #nature #naturephotography #solitarybees
#socialenterprise #vegan #organic

Thanks for reading/caring.
PLEASE boost this forward.
The more informed, the more queens survive and the more #bumblebees we have.
Simple.
Our native wild #bees are in trouble and we need to be there for them every way we can.
Thanks again for helping!
Have a great one. 8/8
🙏🏼🐝

#bees #beesofmastodon
#nature #beesanctuaryireland #hibernation #savingbees #vegan #organic #spring #share #bee #help
#naturephotography #pollinators #boost

https://savingbees.ie

Bumblebee queens emerge in early spring from hibernation and immediately need to feed - that’s why early flowering plants are so important. Apart from feeding, their mission at this time is to find a suitable site to establish a nest. 2/8

#bees #beesofmastodon
#nature #beesanctuaryireland #hibernation #savingbees #vegan #organic #spring #share #bee #help
#naturephotography #pollinators #boost

https://savingbees.ie

Mornin’.

Many people asking us about #bumblebees at the moment - why they’re seeing them on the ground - so what follows is a quick series of toots to explain what they’re up to. Please #boost as every #queen bumblebee that survives means a new colony that gets to exist and produce new queen bees for next year! 1/8
🙏🏼🐝

#bees #beesofmastodon
#nature #beesanctuaryireland #hibernation #savingbees #vegan #organic #spring #share #bee #help
#naturephotography #pollinators
https://savingbees.ie

Yesterday’s fact today just before today’s fact today.
Makes perfect sense.

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 125.

Bumblebee nests are notoriously difficult to find in the #wild.
This can hinder population surveys of #bumblebee species as nest density is used as an indicator of populations.

https://savingbees.ie

#bees #bumblebees #bee
#beesofmastodon #nature #NaturePhotography #savingbees
#beesanctuaryireland

Mornin’.

Warning: Dandelion Agenda!

When in your #garden would you stand on a #daffodil?

THEN DON’T STAND ON A DANDELION EITHER!

Dandelions are vital.
Daffodils are cosmetic - all show. Apart from the old #wild variety the goodness has been bred out of them.

Boost for bees? 🙏🏼

#bumblebees #beesofmastodon
#savingbees #beesanctuaryireland #pollinators #wildflowers #nature
#naturephotography #bee #insects
#science #fun #naturereserve #bees
#dandelions
https://savingbees.ie

Keeping it real this week!
Don’t spray chemicals in your space.

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 119.

In the US in the 1950s, a chemical company and producer of #grass seed, in order to promote a weed killer, launched a PR campaign declaring white #clover a weed.
It wasn’t.
It isn’t.
Chemical weed killers are #poison
PR that.

https://savingbees.ie

#beesofmastodon #bees #bee
#beesanctuaryireland #savingbees #naturephotography #organic #vegan
#bumblebees #whiteclover

Early!
We just couldn’t wait to bring you this clip. What a stunning #bee on such a vivid flower.

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 118.

#Bumblebees leave a scent mark (a sticky secretion) behind whenever they land on #flowers and can distinguish between their own scent marks, those left by fellow nest-mates and those left behind by #bees from other colonies.

https://savingbees.ie

#beesofmastodon
#beesanctuaryireland #savingbees #naturephotography #organic #vegan

Late?
Yep!
Do I care?
About bees - yep!
About the planet -yep!
About punctuality - nope!

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 114.

#Bees consume large amounts of oxygen but don’t breathe through noses or mouths.
Instead they draw oxygen in through holes along their bodies known as spiracles and deliver it directly to tissue and muscles.

https://savingbees.ie

#beesofmastodon #bee
#beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary #solitarybees #savingbees #organic #naturephotography

We have ways of making you flower!
This is mad!

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 109.

Recent research suggests that if food is scarce hungry #bumblebees will chew on plant leaves - not to eat them - but to stress the plant causing it to #flower thus providing earlier #pollen for the bees.
Chew on that! 🤯

https://savingbees.ie

#beesofmastodon #bees
#beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary #solitarybees #savingbees #science #naturephotography
#nature #organic #vegan

Pesticides kill. They’re designed to.

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 103.

An important reminder as we get active in our gardens this time of year:
Most store bought plants contain a cocktail of insecticides/fungicides that kill and are harmful to bees, #insects and #soil.
This needs to change.

https://savingbees.ie
#bee #beesofmastodon #bees
#beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary #solitarybees #savingbees #science #naturephotography
#nature #organic #vegan #bumblebees

Mornin’.

#dandelions are vital early forage for queen #bumblebees emerging from hibernation.
Often times the only forage available in a degraded landscape.
And if you pause to look, really look, they’re gorgeous little bombs of yellow.
Bullied by those in the business of selling poisons and aspiration.
So don’t be an arse.
Don’t mow or spray.
Leave them grow.
Celebrate them!
Be #beepeople.
Pass it on.
Retoot for the #bees!
🙏🏼

savingbees.ie

#nature #wildflowers
#spring #beesanctuaryireland

Mornin’.

Listen to this guy…

Check out https://savingbees.ie

Make saving bees your mission this year.

They need you.

Please share.

We wouldn’t ask if we didn’t need to.

Thank you.

#bees #savingbees #bumblebees #solitarybees
#dogood #nature
#beesanctuaryireland
#beesanctuary #organic #vegan

Late?
We’ve been called worse.
😎🤌

#theBeeAt3

Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 93.

Unlike honey bees, bumblebees usually only collect and store sufficient food in the nest to feed the colony for a couple of days.
So bumblebee colonies are never more than a few days from starvation.
Grow them wildflowers.
Masses of them.

#bee #bees #beesofmastodon
#beesanctuaryireland #beesanctuary
#bumblebees #solitarybees #gardening
#nature #organic #vegan #savingbees
#pollinators #fun #flowers