Bees and the California fires

tillie · October 28, 2007, 06:52:06 PM

I got a call today from an Atlanta friend whose father lives in San Diego. He had discovered a swarm that had occupied some area under a tarp in his yard. She wondered what he should do and I gave her the numbers of the San Diego Beekeepers and the California Beekeepers. Wonder if there are a large number of swarming bees in California now due to being driven out by the fires...?

Linda T in Atlanta

Shawn · October 28, 2007, 07:18:43 PM

Very good question. It is probably rough on both the people and the bees.

Kirk-o · October 28, 2007, 08:15:54 PM

There has been alot of Avacado and Citrus groves burned up.I talked to one
guy he said all the sage honey is goners for a few years same for alot of orchards down there.Bad news along with the drought
kirko

Kathyp · October 28, 2007, 08:46:55 PM

sage is a prolific weed down there. it will be back in force next year. the orchards are another story.....replanting will be immediate, so the impact will be short lived. also, much of what burned was not developed land. while some orchards may have burned, more sage was lost :-)

Kirk-o · October 28, 2007, 09:34:25 PM

I just read a article they interviewed this onr grower he los 25 percent of his 25000 avacado trees these trees were 20 years old.Alot of the cut flower fields went up in smoke also This is in San Diego
kirko

Kathyp · October 28, 2007, 09:44:55 PM

that's to bad. i love my avocados. it's another thing that we don't get fresh up here. they pick them so green that they don't have to good flavor we got down south. they also are very expensive here.

it will be interesting to see what the loss claim is. many trees go through fires and survive. cut flowers are not a big deal. they will be quick to replant and regrow.

no doubt the loss claim will be higher than the actual loss. growers are insured :-)

Brian D. Bray · October 29, 2007, 12:08:30 AM

The way the fires ravaged California I would be surprised if many swarms made it out of the fire area.
Several reasons for this:
1. The way and speed that the Santa Anna winds blue the flames around,
2. The distance the bees would have ultimately needed to fly to get away from the flames,
3. There was still brood in the combs in California.
4. The number of times the swarm might have had to take to the air to get away from the flames,
5. Then there's the flame supression techniques used by firefighters, including airborne water drops.

If a swarm of bees did manage to get clear of the fire area it verges on a small miracle.