| Hives in the open space |
Home|Part1|Part2|Part3
Similar to western honeybee, Japanese honeybee builds hives in closed space, like wood caves and garrets, and then they became to distribute on the temperate zone, where is too cold at the open space to survive in winter season.
It has been regarded as suicidal act and quite rare phenomena that honeybees make their nest in the open space. Especially It has been said that nest of Japanese honeybee in the open space is more rare than that of western honeybee.
While in the city area, where I am exploring, 10% of hives of Japanese honeybees were found in open space as mentioned above. Half of them could last a whole winter season. One of the reasons, why they can survive in the city area, is that big hornet (Vespa mandarinia), one of their natural enemies, does not live in the city area. If big hornet attacks the honeybee hives in the open space, the honeybee cannot defend the nest, then cannot maintain the hives. The second reason is that the lowest temperature in the city area is getting higher every year. Honeybee stocks honey to tide over a cold winter season. If cold weather lasts for long time, they consume a lot of honey. Honeybees living in cold and windy open space ought to consume more honey to produce heat energy than those living in closed space. However honeybees in warm open space city area can tide over winter without using stock of honey up.
natural nest of open space address location length size(cm) the number of comb date 2000.8 osaka zyoutou garden, between branch@ 9 month @40~40 @@10 98.1.27 capture osaka tyuou park of osakazyou,@branch of tree Umonth @30~40 @@8 98.6.7 escape osaka higasisumiyosi overhead Pyear over @50~40 @>10 98.9.5 escape kyoto kita eaves of teahouse 1.5 year @30~50 @ 11 98.10.23 capture osaka kita overhead of sinmidou line Pyear over 50cm over @H 99.7.14 clearance osaka kita overhead of sinmidou line @H 40cm over @H 99.7.14 capture kawanisi eaves of house 4 month @40~39 @ >10 99.8.2 capture neyagawa eaves of house Pyear over @50~25 @ 20 99.9.10 capture hirakata wall of gymnasium 2year @60~65 @@17 2000.8 disappearance
garden, between branch branch of tree overhead eaves of teahouse overhead of sinmidou line
eaves of house eaves of house wall of gymnasium
