Category Archive 'Bees'

09 May 2019

Telling the Bees

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Hans Thoma, Der Bienenfreund (The Bee Friend), 1863-1864, Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe.

Amusing Planet:

There was a time when almost every rural British family who kept bees followed a strange tradition. Whenever there was a death in the family, someone had to go out to the hives and tell the bees of the terrible loss that had befallen the family. Failing to do so often resulted in further loss such as the bees leaving the hive, or not producing enough honey or even dying. Traditionally, the bees were kept abreast of not only deaths but all important family matters including births, marriages, and long absence due to journeys. If the bees were not told, all sorts of calamities were thought to happen. This peculiar custom is known as “telling the bees”.

19 Apr 2019

200,000 Bees on the Roof of Notre Dame Survived

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AFP:

Les 200.000 abeilles des ruches de Notre-Dame ont survécu à l’incendie qui a ravagé le toit de la cathédrale lundi, alors que des réactions du monde entier affluent pour s’inquiéter de leur sort.

“Les abeilles sont en vie. Jusqu’à ce matin, vers 11 heures, je n’avais aucune nouvelle”, explique à l’AFP l’apiculteur Nicolas Géant qui s’occupe des ruches de Notre-Dame situées sur la sacristie attenante à la cathédrale, ce jeudi 18 avril.

“Au départ, je pensais que les trois ruches avaient brûlé, je n’avais aucune information. Mais j’ai ensuite pu voir sur les images satellites que ce n’était pas le cas et le porte-parole de la cathédrale m’a confirmé qu’elles entraient et sortaient des ruches”, poursuit-il.

Nicolas Géant a reçu des messages et des appels du monde entier de personnes se demandant si les abeilles avaient péri dans les flammes. “C’était inattendu. J’ai reçu des appels d’Europe, bien sûr, mais aussi d’Afrique du Sud, du Japon, des États-Unis et d’Amérique du Sud”, dit-il.

En cas d’incendie et dès les premiers signes de fumée, les abeilles se “gorgent” de miel et protègent leur reine. “Cette espèce (l’abeille européenne) n’abandonne pas sa ruche. Elles ne possèdent pas de poumons, mais le CO2 les endort”, explique Nicolas Géant, qui espère revoir ses abeilles la “semaine prochaine”. Chaque ruche produit en moyenne chaque année 25 kilos de miel, vendu au personnel de Notre-Dame, qui les héberge depuis 2013.

(Rough translation)

The 200,000 bees of the hives of Notre Dame survived the fire that ravaged the roof of the cathedral Monday, while reactions from around the world pour in worrying about their fate.

“The bees are alive. Until this morning, around 11 am, I had no news, “the beekeeper Nicolas Géantwho takes care of the hives of Notre-Dame located on the sacristy adjoining the cathedral explained to the AFP this Thursday 18 April.

“At first, I thought the three hives had burned, I had no information. But then I could see on the satellite images that it was not the case and the spokesman of the cathedral confirmed to me that they had entered and removed the hives,” he went on.

Nicolas Géant has received messages and calls from all over the world asking if the bees had died in the flames. “It was unexpected. I have received calls from Europe, of course, but also from South Africa, Japan, the United States and South America, “he said.

In case of fire and at the first sign of smoke, the bees “gorge on” honey and protect their queen. “This species (the European bee) does not abandon its hive. They do not have lungs, but CO2 puts them to sleep, “says Nicolas Geant, who hopes to see his bees again next week. Each hive produces an average of 25 kilos of honey each year, sold to the staff of Notre-Dame, which has been sheltering them since 2013.


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