It is a little known fact that Clifton High School is the proud guardians of two thriving colonies of honeybees.
After their previous keeper (Steve from maintenance) retired at the end of the Autumn Term last year, the responsibility and honour of looking after our School honeybees have been taken over by Art and Design Technician (and secret street dancer) Mrs Lucy Huskisson and Science Technician (and biologist) Miss Hannah Cowling.
Throughout a steep and continuing learning curve, the pair have found this new endeavour deeply rewarding and insightful and under the kind mentorship of Bristol Beekeeping Association’s (BBKA) Master Beekeeper Richard Oliver, they are aiming to take the bees to new heights of health and productivity. Their plans include to establish a school beekeeping club in the future so watch this space!
Highlights so far have included splitting one colony into two, capturing the Queen to mark her with a red dot of paint (she needs to be easier to spot during inspections), observing the tiny eggs (smaller than a sesame seed) and watching the brand-new bees emerging from their cells (exactly like they are being born).
I’m amazed every time I glance at our hives from the window in the Art Department; how busy they are flying back and forth from the hive and surrounding flowers. Last week, they managed to fill an entire super (layer of the hive with 12 frames) with honey in five or six days!?! - They are an incredible inspiration to work hard.
I am happy we are both now more comfortable handling parts of the hive and I look forward to telling the bees of big world events (which is a beekeeping tradition).
Mrs Lucy Huskisson, Art and Design Technician
Keeping bees is a dream that I have had for many years, not only for the potential spoils of delicious golden honey, but also for the opportunity to acutely observe the lives and behaviours of the honeybees and how they form such sophisticated social structures.
From a biological perspective bees are fascinating creatures on so many levels! I love the fact that the male bees (drones) are created by the Queen by selectively not fertilising eggs and consequently, males have half the number of chromosomes to their female counterparts!
There are so many cool bee facts it is impossible not to love them. Too often in the modern world we live a life with many degrees of separation between us and nature, beekeeping for me has helped reduce that and rewild myself.
Miss Hannah Cowling, Science Technician
