To treat common mites, beekeepers coat their bees in powdered sugar. This kills the mites but doesn’t hurt the bees, and they will clean it off anyway. It does, however, make them look like tiny bee ghosts until they groom themselves.
Skunks are natural predators of bees. They will grab a mouthful of bees and suck the juices out before spitting out the bees’ carcasses. To keep the skunks from doing this, beekeepers will build their hives high enough that the skunks have to reach their front paws up to get to the hives. This way, their bellies are exposed and the bees are able to fight back and sting them. Either way, bees die.
Bees are curious, and they may follow you around for a while just to see what you’re doing. Most bees will trail you for a yard or two, but one breed will stalk you for up to half a mile.
*** bees are curious** that is adorable omg
I would be interested in seeing a skunk grab a mouthful of bees. And i like how bees went from curious to stalking real quick
Okay but no one included a picture of ghost bees soooo here:
I was talking with a beekeeper at my parent’s summer blowout party over the weekend (my life is awesome in the oddest ways) and he clued me in to a kind of bee called the ankle-biter that has been bred to fight mites in other bee colonies by BITING OFF AND EATING THE LEGS OF THE MITES and if that isn’t the coolest thing then get the fuck out I am 1000000% here for those bees
I was VERY WORRIED THERE for a second because it almost looks like a– bunch of fungus covered partially dead bunch of bees or something. But that is precious. They’re little… linen-looking small walking sugar collections. Excellent.
I had to look up sugar coated bees myself and I found this beauty:
@james-tee CLAUDIA!!! I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW THIS WAS A THING!! SUGAR BEEEEEES.
ACTUAL SUGAR BEES OMG
The memes were true: sweet dreams really are made from bees.
