Just like any living creature, bees can only tolerate so much heat. Especially in Arizona amid record-breaking weather.
“If you look really close, you can see her tongue. She’s drinking water off my finger,” said Connie Moore, master beekeeper and owner of Honey Hive Farms.
Studies have indicated extreme heat is leading to a decline in bees. As a result, Moore is doing all she can to protect them.
“All of mine have screen bottom boards, it allows for lots of airflow. They’ll use a gallon of water a day sometimes, if not more, just trying to cool and not consuming it but cooling off the hive and all that stuff,” said Moore.
Right now, Moore is taking some of her bigger colonies and making them smaller, along with placing them in shaded areas.
“We pulled these off and basically made what we call a nucleus baby colony, just to kind of help dissipate that heat, plus bodies in that house,” said Moore.
Unfortunately, even with precautions, the heat impacted a colony at her new farm. They lost nearly 30,000 bees. Moore says even losing one is devastating.
“If they die off, we are in big trouble. That impacts our whole food system. Not just that, but they are beneficial because obviously, they’re the ones that make honey. Honey is used not just for consumption, but it’s also used for sometimes wound care,” said Moore.
You can help keep bees cool by leaving out a bucket of water for them and putting it in the same location so they know where to go. It’s also helpful if you place a floating device in the water, that way if they fall in, they’re able to climb back out.