CHESHIRE BEEKEEPERS' ASSOCIATION

Apes curamus et nos curant (We look after bees and they look after us)
Founded 1899
Registered Charity No. 227494
We've been buzzing over 100 years 1899-2012

Microscopy Day at Tarvin 2008

A relaxed and enjoyable microscopy day run by Graham Royle was attended by 11 Cheshire Beekeepers at Tarvin Community Centre on Saturday 2nd August.

The day started with Graham giving a presentation on the workings of the dissection- and compound- microscopes while we all drank coffee and ate some excellent honey-cake and muffins provided by Graham’s wife Gill.

Graham explained how to look for acarine and nosema in the adult bee and then we all eagerly set to work pinning dead bees to cork and removing their heads to look for acarine mites in the trachea, or mashing bees to look for nosema spores in the bee gut. Plenty of dead bees were on hand for sampling and there were ample microscopes, some provided by the County and some brought by individual participants. Later in the morning we were instructed how to make up pollen slides from the various flowers that had been brought in and to look at the fascinating shapes of pollen grains.

Lunch time soon arrived and we all sat around outside in the warm sun eating our sandwiches and discussing the morning’s work and indulging in general chit-chat—as always happens among beekeepers. Muffins and honey cake did the rounds again and when we were all full, we returned to the microscopes for the afternoon session.

Graham instructed us in how to mount a bee in wax ready for dissection and how to take a sample of honey and process this to discover the various pollens in the sample. Everyone again set to, carrying on from the morning’s work, mounting and dissecting bees or looking into the wonderful world of pollen under the microscope.

Graham was busy all day answering individual questions or being called over with ‘Hey Graham, what have I got here?’ Or ‘Come and look at this!’

An enjoyable day was had by all and the event was closed by Pam Hatton giving a vote of thanks to Graham for organising the event, and to Gill for the excellent cakes.

So thanks again, Graham.

Stuart Hatton

©2007 Cheshire Beekeepers' Association

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