Many of you will be wondering what happened to Apis UK this year and many of you have emailed in to ask when (and if) we were going to continue to produce this popular ezine. Well we are back. Production problems meant that in order to continue we needed to effectively re-model Apis [...]
SCHOOLCHILDREN PUBLISH IN TOP SCIENCE JOURNAL
Students at Blackawton Primary School in the UK carried out their own original research on the vision of the buff-tailed bumble-bee Bombus terrestris.
Their research, published in the prestigious Royal Society journal Biology Letters reveals that “bumble-bees can use a combination of colour and spatial relationships in [...]
Are bees addicted to caffeine and nicotine?
In another interesting piece of research, the University of Haifa team look at how bees prefer nectar with caffeine in it.
Bees prefer nectar with small amounts of nicotine and caffeine over nectar that does not comprise these substances at all, a study [...]
Biologist discovers ‘stop’ signal in honey bee communication
Bees can signal to their nest mates that there are good nectar sites out there and direct them to those sites, but if upon arrival foragers find danger there, can they then warn their colleagues about this and stop them coming. From [...]
CAN BEES RECOGNISE HUMAN FACES – or just strange flowers?
In a previous issue of Apis UK in 2005, we reported on some research that showed that bees could recognise human faces but now in some new research a French scientists believes that this may not be the whole of the story.
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FANCY A HOT DRINK? BEES LIKE ONE TOO!
In some fascinating research, we learn that we are not the only creatures to enjoy the idea of a warming drink when we are cold. Bees warm up with a drink, too!
A study by insect scientists Drs Melanie Norgate and Adrian Dyer working at the [...]
ELEPHANTS HAVE A WORD FOR ‘BEE-WARE’
A new research report has found that or the first time elephants have been found to produce an alarm call associated with the threat of bees, and have been shown to retreat when a recording of the call is played even when there are no bees around.
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RNA VIRUSES: Does this research indicate one of the reasons for pollinator decline?
In a piece of worrying new research, Penn State researchers in the USA have found that native pollinators, like wild bees and wasps, are infected by the same viral diseases as honey bees and that these viruses are transmitted via [...]
SLEEPY BEES PERFORM SLOPPY WAGGLE DANCES
We all know what it’s like to be tired. We stumble and make mistakes and get grumpy. Well it happens to bees as well. Sleepless honey bees miscommunicate, too. This surprised me because I always thought that bees didn’t sleep but according to new research from [...]
HOW DOES HONEY KILL BUGS? Another discovery!
Anecdotal evidence over centuries as well as clinical testing in recent times have shown us that honey has a range of healing properties and most honey has natural anti-microbial properties due primarily to the natural presence of peroxide in the honey. Certain speciality honeys may have additional [...]
THE SECRET WEAPON OF THE ALMOND TREE
It seems incredible that the almond secretes a poison in its nectar so as to attract pollinators. New research tells us why this contradiction occurs.
Has the almond tree developed a unique way of drawing potential pollinators? A group of researchers at the Department of Environmental and [...]
FEARS OF A DECLINE IN BEE POLLINATORS CONFIRMED
Most people who read the newspapers have begun to realise that pollination decline is something to take seriously but is there any researched evidence to show that this is happening and why is it happening? Well there is now! A recent University of Toronto study provides [...]
Charles Darwin’s ‘abominable mystery’ has come somewhat closer to being solved by this fascinating piece of research which shows us just how pollinators are able to influence the shape of a flower.
For the past 10 years, José María Gómez and Francisco Perfectti of the University of Granada in Spain have used [...]
Gardeners must unite to save Britain’s wildlife, experts urge. To encourage urban biodiversity, neighbours should co-ordinate their gardening efforts to create a network of interlinking habitats where birds, bees and mammals can flourish.
“Gardens don’t exist in isolation, they link together to form interconnected habitat networks that should be planned [...]
PLANTING FOR BEES. IS IT WORTH IT?
There have been many stories of pollinator/bee decline in recent years, but can something practical be done about this? Recent research suggests that in future, bee pastures may help pollinators prosper— wildflowers might someday be planted in ‘bee pastures,’ floral havens created as an efficient, practical, environmentally [...]
Transgenic crops: How do genes jump from crop to crop?
Most beekeepers are keenly aware that the main aim of their charges is to transfer pollen from flower to flower and they are also aware that this can also mean the transfer of genes via pollen dispersal. But do we [...]
As you may have noticed from previous issues of ApisUK I am a great fan of this true genius of an American poet. Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Born in Massachusetts to a successful family with strong community ties, [...]
Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He was a noted writer on many subjects including bees and beekeeping and there is much of his literature that is very accurate and tells us about beekeeping in his times but was he really [...]
This month it’s FRIED BREAD. BUT a very special fried bread from Spain with tastes of fine sweet sherry, spices and honey. Try this one for a good wholesome breakfast on a cold snowy day (Not in New Zealand as it’s full summer) but back in the UK of course. Ideal for an [...]
2 BOOKS REVIEWED THIS MONTH
1. QUEEN BREEDING AND GENETICS by Eigel Holm
Book review by Stuart Ching, Nottingham BKA
This book deals with the essentials of honeybee genetics in an extremely detailed manner ,– another beekeeping classic. It is a high level text aimed, in my opinion, at commercial queen raisers and academics. [...]
“Orchid’s beauty was not “designed” by God to please humans but honed by natural selection to attract insect cross-pollinators.”
Charles Darwin 1862
Charles Robert Darwin FRS (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the [...]
