A golden humming cloud of honeybees arrived unexpectedly one sunny June morning and moved into a knothole in the siding of the house. Three weeks later, Mr. E. helped these mysterious creatures into a comfy wooden box in his garden and began to live the lifelong dream of herding millions of stinging insects and collecting their sweet honey. Please enjoy the adventures of Mr. E's Mysterious Bees.





January 5, 2009

Bumble Bee Identification

When I was in Montana I saw a bumble bee that had a few orange stripes on its torso. I'd never seen that before. After the amazing native bee talk I attended last year I have been very interested in all the native bees in our area. Supposedly over 87 separate species have been identified in the east Bay. I've spotted a few bright green ones in the community garden where Tree has his Free Farm Stand. This winter I have been burning old wood from an enormous fallen oak tree in one of my gardens. The wood has been cut to size, but has been sitting outside for several years before I decided to take it home and burn it in my fireplace. I have notice holes drilled in some of the logs and worried about what creatures might have made a home in there. They are also covered in shelf fungus. Is that dangerous to inhale smoke of fungus? We'll see. The little holes are not plugged, so I have hoped there are no native bees nesting in there over the winter. I cringe each time I throw a log on the fire.

Someone from the SF Bee Club posted this link from the USDA Agricultural Research Service on our bee list for a wallet ID card for the native bees in Utah. I LOVE it that there are people out there that care enough to make a wallet ID card...and who believe enough that there are others who care that might want this thing in their wallet. I know I do!

How To: Identification Bumble Bees of Northern Utah
written by Jim Cane with help from Matt Shepherd
illustrations by Linda Kervin

The Cache Valley and its neighboring mountains are home to 11 species of native bumble bees. Among them are the region’s largest bees, particularly the robust queens seen flying and foraging in the spring when they are establishing and provisioning a nest. Bumble bees are important pollinators of our native flora, especially in the mountains, as well as some of our garden plants.

Bumble bees possess three attributes that will help you to distinguish them from all other bees in the region: they are big, they are more furry than most other bees, and females transport pollen as a wet mass held in a “pollen basket” on the hind leg. The pollen basket of the hind pair of legs is broadened and concave like a shallow, elongate spoon. If empty, its polished surface can be seen reflecting light. Only the honey bee in our fauna has a similar pollen basket; all other bees here that collect pollen carry it in a dense brush of hairs either on the hind leg or under the abdomen. Bumble bees are much more furry than the honey bee, the only other bee here that has a pollen basket.

(For Your Wallet)

We have depicted the eleven bumble bee species of Cache Valley and neighboring mountains as stylized portraits. Each portrait depicts the bee’s back from above, with their heads facing the top of the screen (or page). Legs and wings are not shown, as they lack diagnostic features. The accompanying uncolored figure will guide you through the different relevant parts of a bee.

Some of the species will be exceedingly difficult to distinguish in the field, especially worn individuals, but other species can be recognized given a trained eye. There are three attributes of a bumble bee’s furry coat that you should see and note for identification. Progressing from head to abdomen, these are:

1) Head. What is the hair color atop the head yellow or black?

2) Thorax. Is there a patch of black hair on the top of the thorax, between or behind the wings? If so, is it a disc of black, a band of black, or is the entire hind half of the thorax covered in black hair?

3) Abdomen. Is the tip white? Are there orange bands? Which segments are orange? Is an orange band split by a central black stripe along the upper surface? Are the yellow hairs greenish or golden?

This might seem like a lot of detail to gather from such a small creature, but with a bit of practice it becomes easy and quick to see and note these features, just as when you are trying to identify a bird. To make it a bit easier, carry a notebook in which you can jot down the information or sketch the bees that you see. Binoculars can help with bees on bushes or in more inaccessible places. Importantly, take the time to enjoy watching the bee as she forages, and listen for her buzzing those flowering species that shed their pollen like a salt shaker through tiny pores at the tips of the anthers (examples include shooting star, tomato, and nightshade).


If that was not enough. How about this extensive chart from bumblebee.org

Bombus fraternus
Bombus fraternus
Range: New Jersey down to Florida, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado and New Mexico.
Bombus crotchii
Bombus crotchiiBombus crotchii
Range: California and Mexico
Bombus nevadaensis auricomus
Bombus nevadensis auricomus
Note: sometimes just called Bombus auricomus.
Range
: Ontario to Florida, west to Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia.
Bombus nevadensis nevadensis
Range: Alaska to California, Arizona, New Mexico east to Wisconsin, Mexico.
Bombus morrisoni
Bombus morrisoni
Range: British Columbia to California, east to South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, New Mexico.
Bombus pennsylvanicus pennsylvanicus
Bombus pennsylvanicus pennsylvanicus
Range: Quebec, Ontario south to Florida, west to Minnesota, S. Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, New Mexico, Mexico.
Bombus pennsylvanicus sonorus
Bombus pennsylvanicus sonorus
Note: sometimes known as Bombus sonorus
Range: Texas, west to California, Mexico
Bombus grisecollis
Bombus grisecollis
Range: Quebec south to Florida, west to British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, northern California
Bombus perplexus
Bombus perplexus
Range: Alaska to Maine, south to Wisconsin, Illinois, Florida, Alberta
Bombus bimaculatus
Bombus bimaculatus
Range: Ontario, Maine south to Florida, west to Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi.
Bombus impatiens
Bombus impatiens
Range: Ontario, Maine south to Florida, west to Michigan, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri.
Bombus affinus
Bombus affinus
Range: Quebec, Ontario south to Georgia, west to South Dakota and North Dakota.
Note: Also known as the rusty-patched bumblebee. Range has declined sharply recently, now found in only a few areas. Often has a bald patch between the wings in the middle of the thorax.
Bombus vagans vagans
Bombus vagans vagans
Range: British Columbia east to Nova Scotia, south to Georgia, Tennessee, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington.
Bombus sandersoni
Bombus sandersoniBombus sandersoni
Range: Ontario to Newfoundland, south to Tennessee and North Carolina
Bombus frigidus
Bombus frigidus
Range: Alaska and Northwest territories, south to Colorado (high elevations only).
Bombus lucorum queen {Bombus lucorum}
Range: Alaska south to Southern British Columbia and Alberta, east through Yukon and North Western Territories.
More>>>
Bombus lucorum worker Bombus lucorum worker
Bombus lucorum male
Bombus lucorum male
Bombus ternarius
Bombus ternarius
Range: Yukon east to Nova Scotia, south to Georgia, Michigan, Kansas, Montana, British Columbia.
Bombus terricola terricola Bombus terricola terricola
Range:
Nova Scotia to Florida, West to British Columbia, Montana, South Dakota.
Note: Also known as the yellow-banded bumblebee. Once common, but now in steep decline.

Bombus terricola occidentalisBombus terricola occidentalis, Bombus occidentalis
Range: Alaska south to northern California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, South Dakota.
Note: also known as Bombus occidentalis.
Bombus vandykei
Bombus vandykei
Range: Washington to southern California
Bombus vosnesenskii
Bombus vosnesneskii
Range: British Columbia south to California, Nevada, Mexico
Bombus californicus
Bombus californicus
Range: British Colimbia, Alberta south to California, Arizona, New Mexico, Mexico
Bombus rufocinctus
Bombus rufocinctus
Range
: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebac, west to British Columbia, south to California, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Maine, Mexico.

Bombus rufocinctus
Bombus rufocinctus
Range: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebac, west to British Columbia, south to California, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Maine, Mexico.
Bombus rufocinctus
Bombus rufocinctus
Range: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebac, west to British Columbia, south to California, Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Maine, Mexico.
Bombus caliginosus
Bombus caliginosus
Range: Washington, Oregon, and coastal areas in California
Bombus bifarius nearticus
Bombus bifarius nearticus
Range: Alaska to Yukon south to California and Utah.
Bombus bifarius bifarius
Bombus bifarius bifarius
Range: British Columbia, Oregon, California, Idaho, Utah, Colorado.
Bombus balteatus
Bombus balteatus
Range: Arctic Alaska and Canada, Sierra Nevada and White Mountains, Truchas Peak in New Mexico.
Bombus hyperboreus
Bombus hyperboreus
Range: Arctic Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories, Greenland.
Bombus polaris polaris
Bombus polaris polaris
Range: Arctic Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Arctic Eurasia.
Bombus edwardsii
Bombus edwardsii
Range: Oregon, California, Nevada
Bombus melanopygus
Bombus melanopygus
Range: Alaska south to northern California, Idaho, Colorado
Bombus borealis
Bombus borealis
Range: Southern Canada from Nova Scotia to Alberta, Northern USA from Maine to New Jersey wast to North Dakota and South Dakota.
Bombus fervidus fervidus
Bombus fervidus fervidus
Range: Quebec and New Brunswick south to Georgia, west to British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California and Mexico.
Bombus appositus
Bombus appositus
Range: British Columbia east to Saskatchewan, south to New Mexico, Arizona and California.
Bombus sylvicola
Bombus sylvicola
Range: Alaska east to Newfoundland, south through the mountains (Cascases, Sierra Nevada, Rockies), California, Utah, New Mexico.
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January 4, 2009

Designing the Label

I'm selling honey and can't keep handwriting labels. Diane, a friend from college, offered to help design the label and now I need to get off my butt and think about some styles and images. Here is what I have so far.

I am torn between retro signs, circus sideshow, elegant botanical drawings or medieval woodcuts and manuscripts. Thoughts?