Native Irish Honey Bee Society
Available to Purchase Below
“The Native Irish Honey Bee, Apis mellifera mellifera” focuses exclusively on the native Irish honey bee, featuring narratives on its evolution, genetics, history and conservation, with practical “How-to” sections on bee improvement, plus real-life stories from commercial beekeepers. Its aims are to increase awareness of and appreciation for the precious resources imbued in the native black honey bee, to encourage beekeepers to choose native Irish honey bees and to discourage the buying and importation of non-native honey bees.
Latest NIHBS News
NUIG bee treatment survey
Dear Beekeeper, In recent years some beekeepers in Ireland have begun to monitor levels of varroa in their hives and to only treat colonies that …
COLOSS: Honey Bee Colony Loss/Survival Survey 2019/2020
COLOSS: Honey Bee Colony Loss/Survival Survey 2019/2020 Dear Secretary and fellow beekeepers This short correspondence is a reminder that it is now time to complete …
Bernadette Ferguson
We were very sorry to learn of the sudden death of our respected friend and colleague Bernadette Ferguson on April 9th 2020. Bernadette …
Sicamm Conference Athlone postponed until September 2021
NEW Dates – 3rd to 5th September 2021 and black bee excursions on 5th & 6th Good news! We are delighted to confirm that …
NIHBS Munster Seminar reminder 7th March
Don’t forget to put 7th March in your Diary There will be a full day of bee related talks followed by the NIHBS AGM Full …
UBKA conference 14th-15th Feb
A full list of conference speakers including Tom Seeley can be found here The conference takes place it the usual venue of Greenmount College Antrim …
About NIHBS
The Native Irish Honey Bee Society was established to promote the conservation of Apis mellifera mellifera throughout the island of Ireland. The Society strives to raise public awareness of our native honey bee and its importance, and acts in an advisory capacity to groups and individuals wishing to promote and preserve it.
What Our Native Honey Bee Looks Like
Apis mellifera mellifera (aka European dark bee) can be distinguished from other subspecies by its stocky body, overall dark coloration, plus abundant thoracic and sparse abdominal hair, which is brown. There can be heavy dark pigmentation of the wings. Overall, when viewed from a distance, these bees should appear blackish or rich dark brown.
Bee Improvement
As part of our conservation mission, NIHBS advocates that Irish beekeepers buy native bees. To that end, NIHBS is affiliated with multiple bee breeding groups located around the country. Find out more about them by clicking the button below.
