A Good Instagram for Beekeeping Videos and Wildlife Photograpy


A Drowning Honeybee Gets Rescued



     We all like a lighthearted video from time to time. On my Instagram, Donny_Podrasky, you'll get to see videos of my bees, including a very popular video that, at the time of writing this blog entry, already has more than 50k views and hundreds of likes. In the video described, I notice a bee drowning in a swimming pool and save her with my bare hand. She gets safely returned back to her hive.

    If you're interested in watching how backyard beekeeping is really done, I regularly post videos of the hive maintenance that I do on nearly a weekly basis. I post these videos on YouTube. Some may consider these videos educational, informative, or just relaxing to watch as I work with the bees. The most recent video I've done was a fail video in which I make my first attempt at sugar rolling my bees to check for mites. 

    Sugar rolling is a process in which you shake off hundreds of bees from brood-bearing frames and then scoop up a half cup of bees. You then pour the half cup of bees into a shaker with 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar. The beekeeper is then to roll the shaker slowly for 1 minute, then place the shaker in a cool, shaded area for 3 minutes. The powdered sugar makes it difficult for mites to stay on the bees. Next, the beekeeper shakes the shaker gently, so as not to injure any bees. This causes mites to fall out of the shaker and onto a white surface. After that, the beekeeper adds water to the sugar so that the mites can become visible. 

    To calculate the percentage of varroa mite infestation, divide the number of mites by 300 (the approximate number of bees in a half cup) and then multiply by 100. 

ex: 2 mites \ 300 = 0.006

0.006 X 100 = 0.66% varroa mite infestation.

If 9 mites are counted in a half cup sample, that would mean that there are about 9 mites per 300 bees, which would be a 3% infestation. If mites are discovered at a 3% infestation or higher, the hive is in trouble. It's good to begin treating for mites before the 3% mark.




There are at least a few ways a beekeeper can treat for mites. One common way is to use Apivar strips.

Small-scale beekeepers may find it more agreeable to either use a vaporizer or a fogger to treat for mites. Using either of these methods allows you to return the honey super to the bees sooner.

Below are some images of a fogger and a vaporizer that could be used with oxalic acid (if legal in your state) to treat honeybees for mites.


Above are images of an insect fogger (left) and vaporizer (right).

Thanks for reading. I hope this post has provided you with some good sources for fun nature videos and photos. 

-Donny Podcast

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