Some of those who celebrate Christmas think that following day should contain plenty of exercise. I, together with untold numbers of ex-foxes, do not share that opinion. But, all the same, I swallowed my fears of broken limbs and frostbitten fingers and left the scant comfort of my home to trudge through the cold, leafless misery of Boxing Day afternoon in order to check the hives for disasters. It wasn’t a completely sunless day, but the half-thawed snow of the week before remained, transformed into endless sparkling sheets of glistening ice that promised nothing but indignity or death. The dimal afternoon was not improved by the reappearance of aeroplanes in the drear expanse of sky, wallowing sluggishly westwards and reminding me, with each intrusive roar, of the sunnier climes I was not in.
Nestbox
There’s not a lot to do at this time of year, except check the hives for disasters, but that gloomy chore still has to be done. One, among many, of the disasters that bees can suffer is the attention of woodpeckers; percussive and opular birds that have evolved a talent for getting insects out of hollow wood. A nestbox that’s attached to a tree in the apiary has received some attention over the year from something that’s been nibbling at it. I can’t be sure if this is woodpecker damage without catching the culprit in the act, but it seems a reasonable assumption.
Another nestbox
This isn’t entirely bad news. Although woodpeckers can break into hives, they tend not to. Possibly that’s because hives don’t look enough like trees for them, or possibly they’re too close to the ground, where cats patrol. But I’m told that, in some parts of the country, woodpeckers routinely attack hives, which suggests that they’re gradually learning. I’m hoping that they’re not, and that they’re exceptional cases, where the hives are in open, cat-free places and the birds are so short of food that they’ll take on bees. But complacency breeds catastrophe, so I’m keeping an eye open.
Squirrel, hiding
Squirrels are a possibility, and they have been observed behaving furtively near the boxes, but the work looks a bit too neat for them and it’s been taking too long. Although squirrels can chew through wood relatively easily, that’s something they do to keep their teeth nice, and rarely part of a construction project, let alone one that’s been going on for months. Besides, those holes don’t look big enough for squirrels.
If the hives do start getting attacked, then we’ll have to wrap them in bubble-wrap or chicken-wire or anything else that will stop creatures from holding on effectively or getting too close to the wood to damage it. These are, simple, practical remedies, but also awkward and unsightly, and as it’s not yet a widespread problem in the area, we’ll trust to luck for the moment.
