News from the world of beekeeping – Items of potential interest 29 May 2019

What is this flitting about? It flutters over a green patch of grass, beating its transparent wings so fast it’s hard to tell how many it has exactly. It hovers over the grass, darts back and forth, and then shoots upwards making an impressive 360-degree flip, worthy of an aerobatics show. Zipping around, it acts eerily similar to a pesky housefly dodging a swatter.

While the flyer is insect-size, weighing less than an ounce, it is entirely man-made.

Called DelFly, the miniature robot was built by . . .

To continue reading: http://memagazineselect.asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/article.aspx?articleID=2733759

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Pollination in Seedless Watermelons and Honey Bee Placement, Bumble Bees as Pollinators

Gordon Johnson

A female watermelon flower will need around 500-1000 pollen grains to be fertilized effectively. This will require a minimum of 8 visits by a honey bee for seeded watermelons. In seedless watermelon more visits will be required. The pollen produced by seedless watermelons is not viable. To fertilize seedless watermelon, pollen must be transferred from viable male flowers in standard or special pollinizer seeded types to triploid seedless female flowers. Because bees foraging in seedless watermelon plantings carry a mix of viable and non-viable pollen, more pollination visits (16 to 24) by honey bees are needed to set fruit.

First planted watermelons are now . . .

To continue reading: http://extension.udel.edu/weeklycropupdate/?p=13369

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Urban Bee Keepers Can Help Save Wild Bees

Rebecca Ellis

With reports of declining insect populations worldwide, or what George Monbiot calls an “insectageddon,” there is growing concern about the health of pollinators. This in turn has led to increasing interest in urban beekeeping, pollinator gardening and urban bee advocacy. . . .

To continue reading: https://www.civilized.life/articles/urban-bee-keepers-can-help-save-wild-bees/

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On the Wild Side: Native bees Cindy Murray

Early one morning last summer, I was strolling along my vegetable gardens when a somewhat troubling peculiarity caught my attention: although our zucchini plants were blooming, the only pollinator in sight was a black and silver native bee engaged in gathering pollen in the heart of one of the blossoms.

I wondered, “Where are all . . .

To continue reading: https://azdailysun.com/news/local/on-the-wild-side-native-bees/article_d761cb69-bf9c-553d-8637-f824143b2552.html

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New Law Would Help Bees—but Could Leave Other Pollinators out in the Cold Ian Graber-Stiehl

Amid the continuing decline of pollinators worldwide, U.S. lawmakers recently revived a perennially struggling bill that aims to save these helpful species. However, pollinator loss is more complicated than many headlines suggest. And curbing it, some scientists say, requires more than just stricter pesticide regulation—a major focus of the bill. This is the fifth iteration of the Save America’s Pollinators Act, which was introduced by Democratic Representatives Earl Blumenauer of Oregon and John Conyers Jr. of Michigan in 2013 but has never been put to a vote. It was initially intended to address . . .

To continue reading: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-law-would-help-bees-but-could-leave-other-pollinators-out-in-the-cold/?redirect=1

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Researchers track pollinators across the Pacific Northwest

Eric Barker

LEWISTON, Idaho — Everybody seems to love bumblebees.

The native insects are generally embraced by humans, who often celebrate them in children’s stories and even sometimes dress like them for Halloween or other costume-themed events. But it turns out most people really don’t know much about them, how their populations are doing and specific actions that can be taken to preserve them.

That is starting to change with . . .

To continue reading: https://www.bendbulletin.com/localstate/7189238-151/researchers-track-pollinators-across-the-pacific-northwest

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Bee Safe Program Working in Tandem with Bee Where Program

Brian German

The Bee Safe program, administered by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is designed to protect bees from other pests and disease, as well as minimize exposure to pesticides. The Bee Where program facilitates communication between beekeepers and pesticide applicators to ensure the safety of beehives. For almonds alone, more than 30 billion bees are brought to California to pollinate the crop every year. The two programs will work in conjunction to . . .

To continue reading: http://agnetwest.com/bee-safe-program-tandem-bee-where/

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Researchers look to fungi to help keep honeybees healthy

Kate Prengaman

Honeybees struggle with a variety of challenges, from pesticides to habitat loss, but Washington State University researchers call enemy No. 1 the parasitic varroa mite, which weakens bees and spreads viruses.

“Imagine a pest the size of a dinner plate just sucking your nutrients all the time,” said Jennifer Han, a postdoctoral researcher working with entomologist Steve Sheppard.

His lab studies new methods for controlling the mites, including the idea that putting hives in cold storage to pause breeding will break the mite life cycle, a fungal pathogen that could act as biocontrol for the mites, and a mushroom extract that helps bees fight . . .

To continue reading: https://www.goodfruit.com/researchers-look-to-fungi-to-help-honeybees/

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Beekeeping Tips—From Bees!

For the hobby beekeeper, there’s much to consider when housing your first domestic honey bee colonies—what kind of hive to get, where to put them, where to get your bees, and how to help them survive the winter.

But when left to their own devices, what do the bees themselves prefer? From smaller nests to higher openings, wild honey bees seem to prefer very different conditions from the closely clustered square boxes of traditional beekeeping . . .

To continue reading: https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/beekeeping-tips-from-bees/

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Househunting For Honey Bees

Thomas Seeley

The honey bee’s process of choosing a dwelling place unfolds during colony reproduction (swarming), which occurs mainly in late spring and early summer (May–July) in the Ithaca area. The first step in this house-hunting process begins even before a swarm has left the parent nest. A few hundred of a colony’s oldest bees, its foragers, cease collecting food and turn instead to scouting for new living quarters. This requires a radical switch in behavior. These bees no longer visit . . .

To continue reading: https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/how-do-bees-find-a-home/

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Art-science collaboration spotlights pollinator health

Jose Beduya

The declining population of insects – especially pollinators, such as honeybees and wasps – is a serious threat to ecosystems and agricultural production around the world, according to Scott McArt, assistant professor of entomology.

Just how serious . . .

To continue reading: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2019/05/art-science-collaboration-spotlights-pollinator-health

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LCC named ‘Bee Campus’ affiliate

Lane Community College has become a certified member of a program that benefits pollinators. Now an affiliate of Bee Campus USA, Lane is the fifth Oregon higher education institution to be certified, joining Portland State University, Portland Community College, Southern Oregon University and University of Oregon.

LCC has been working on certification . . .

To continue reading: https://www.registerguard.com/news/20190529/lcc-named-bee-campus-affiliate

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Forecasting future climate change impacts today

DAVIS, Calif. — Scientific evidence of a warming climate in California and across the globe is clear, but the impacts on ecosystems and agriculture are still difficult to predict.

Sophisticated computer models are used to forecast future climate. Understanding that temperature and precipitation levels will change in the future does not tell the full story: UC Agriculture and Natural Resources researchers also want real-world experience under those future conditions.

Moreover, some agricultural operations have higher sensitivity to the changes than others. Rangeland forage is particularly sensitive . . .

To continue reading: https://www.morningagclips.com/forecasting-future-climate-change-impacts-today/

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A Plant’s Lifeline: Only One Bee Species Can Sip The Nectar Of The Death Camas

Ashley Rohde

Utah scientists recently discovered a bee species that only collects food from death camas, a toxic flowering plant. This is the only known species that can collect pollen or nectar from death camas, which means it is the only known pollinator for this unique species.

“The name of the bee is Andrena astragali. It turns out this bee goes to no other . . .

To continue reading: https://www.upr.org/post/plants-lifeline-only-one-bee-species-can-sip-nectar-death-camas

❀ FROM CATCH THE BUZZ:

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CRISPR gene-editing used to understand links between diet and genetics to make a future honey bee queen. How a queen bee achieves her regal… Read on » 2. CATCH THE BUZZ – California Honey Crop A Mixed Bag This Year. Here’s Why.

By: Christine Souza – California Farm Bureau Stanislaus County beekeeper Orin Johnson tends to beehives near Hollister. He says he is optimistic that the… Read on » 3. CATCH THE BUZZ – Weed Killer Residues Found in 98 Percent of Canadian Honey Samples.

Carey Gillam As U.S. regulators continue to dance around the issue of testing foods for residues of glyphosate weed killers, government scientists in Canada… Read on » 4. CATCH THE BUZZ – For 2018 – Honey Production Up a Hair, Prices Down a Couple of Hairs, Other Income Now a Big Player.

United States Honey Production Up 2 Percent for Operations with Five or More Colonies in 2018 United States honey production in 2018 from producers… Read on » 5. CATCH THE BUZZ – Feeding The World In 2050 – Indigo Ag Thinks They Can Do It. Here’s How – Revolutionary Seed Treatments!

A four-year-old start-up called Indigo Ag is the No. 1 company on the 2019 CNBC Disruptor 50 list. Indigo Ag is out to feed the world and… Read on » 6. CATCH THE BUZZ – Controlling Varroa – 89% of Large-Scale Beekeepers Said They Use Chemical Varroacides, While 61% Of Small-Scale Beekeepers Do.

With the Varroa destructor mite a pernicious pest of managed honey bee colonies across North America, beekeepers have a variety of control methods to… Read on » 7. CATCH THE BUZZ – Make the Future Happen. Be Part of The Bee Health Guru Smartphone App.

Developers of the Honey Bee Health Guru smartphone application report they have exceeded the Kickstarter.com stated goal of $13,400 to produce the first-ever diagnostic… Read on » ❀ FROM ABJ EXTRA:

EPA Blocks a Dozen Products Containing Pesticides Thought Harmful to Bees Dino Grandoni

The Environmental Protection Agency is pulling from the market a dozen products containing pesticides known to be toxic to a linchpin of the U.S. food system — the honeybee.

The agency announced Monday it has canceled the registrations of 12 pest-killing products with compounds belonging to a class of chemicals known as neonicotinoids, as part of a legal settlement.

For years, beekeepers and wildlife conversationalists . . . To continue reading: https://mailchi.mp/dadant.com/abj-extra-may-23-2019-epa-blocks-a-dozen-products-containing-pesticides-thought-harmful-to-bees?e=d476a0d684