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Just 50 years ago scientific journals dismissed Manuka honey as a “worthless and harmful substance”. In fact, few researchers were willing to take it seriously due to a belief that honey was merely an alternative medicine. Within the past few years however, new evidence has been turning opinions. Recently, Manuka…
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Starting the practice of beekeeping can be a daunting task, especially considering the dire state of bee populations worldwide today. Beekeepers in Johannesburg, South Africa, are facing the same declining bee populations that are being seen in the United States. Not only are South African honey bees afflicted by the…
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Recently a lot of attention has been given to breeding varroa mite resistant honey bees, but there has also been concern that this good-intentioned method could come with a downside. One main way honey bee workers deal with parasites is by socially grooming one-another. Researchers hope that we can create…
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For many of us, computers play an important role in everyday life. From news, to entertainment, to our jobs, computers make many things easier. We’re hoping to include beekeeping on this list of computer-aided tasks. As in fields such as agriculture, forestry, and medicine, monitoring beehives with shared control techniques…
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A recent article published in Nature discussed the effects of migratory management and environmental conditions on the lifespan and oxidative stress of honey bees (Apis mellifera). Migratory management is the transportation of honey bees across the country for pollination purposes in large-scale agriculture. Frequent moves such as these may cause high levels of…
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Honey bees constantly struggle against various bacterial and fungal species. For example, Nosema species are very detrimental parasitic fungi that infect honey bees and can cause great harm to an entire colony in a very short amount of time. A hive that is heavily infected with nosema will often collapse, leading to robbing behavior by other colonies and a…
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A recent study out of Queen Mary University of London shows that bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) can learn to pull a string for a reward then teach others to do the same. This suggests that that bumblebees engage in cultural transmission, a form of social learning. The Experiment In this experiment, individual bumblebees were…
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Nutrition affects every aspect of an organism’s life, from behavior to evolution. For social insects, such as bees, the gathering and consumption of nutrients can be complex due to changes in the environment and their community. Bees temporarily store and protect some nutrition in their body, but it is mostly stored…
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The growth of beekeeping in cities is allowing urban beekeepers to get creative with the location and height of their hives. The most common spots for urban beehives is on rooftops, including skyscrapers and office buildings. The highest hive you can find in the world is located right in New…
