What they have been up to in April....

Here are some images from the early season in hiveland on the coast of  Maine.....

The following images were made starting in early April.  In the first two,  the hive wrap is still in place as protection against the cold,  but as you can see, the pollen collection has begun! And from several sources as presumed from the differing colors. The first day this year I noticed pollen-laden bees was April 3th.  Skunk cabbage was the only plant I found that was flowering.    Look at the bee in the first photo whose abdomen is totally coated with pollen!

In the following two images, honey bees are sipping the liquid from the cut surface of a yellow birch.  This small tree was cut last fall but the roots were still working.  Birch is another tree from which syrup can be made but it takes a lot of sap to boil down to a good thickness!  The bees were liking this dilute sweet drink better than the fumagillin-laced 1:1 sugar syrup on the hive at this time! (  just in case  this fungicide is added to the syrup for treatment of possible Nosema infection.)  See their tongues extended to the surface of the tree?

And finally, bees are foraging on early flowers of grape hyacinth in the first photo and Cornelian cherry, Cornus mas, in the second.  These two photos were made  just a few days ago.