February already and here we are harvesting before the combs get a chance to get contaminated with poisonous Tutin honeydew that tends to harm people here in NZ. This honeydew comes from leafhopper insects and is extremely toxic to humans but not bees.
As with the last issue, I’m looking through research items from 2010 [...]
This transcript of the House of Commons debate illustrates the seriousness of the situation regarding honey bee and other pollinator losses. The scientific article that underpins the debate is also featured in this issue of Apis UK and is entitled ‘Are we poisoning our bees’. Ed.
The House of Commons [...]
BBKA ANNUAL DELEGATES MEETING – JANUARY 22nd 2011
Electronic voting was the star of the show at the 2011 BBKA ADM. Each delegate was issued with a credit card sized key pad, personalised to the delegate’s association. To vote, every association name was shown on a large screen and the name disappeared when [...]
New amber deposits found in Indid yields Eocene insects. New information on early insect life is an important part of our learning about the development of bees and flowers and this new discovery is incredibly important in this respect.
A vast new amber deposit in India has yielded 100 fossil [...]
BUMBLEBEE LOSSES IN THE USA – MORE BAD NEWS FOR BIODIVERSITY
We have all learned about the huge losses of honeybees in the US but now a report has been released detailing major losses in the relative abundance of bumblebees. A large-scale study has shown a major decline in bumble bees in [...]
In people, disturbances to the biological clock are known to cause problems for shift workers and new parents and for contributing to mood disorders, but what about bees? How would they react and can we learn anything from them?
New research carried out in Israel tells us that honey bees removed from their usual [...]
ARE WE KILLING OUR BEES WITH ‘BEE SAFE’ INSECTICIDES?
Most beekeepers will have read about the use of the controversial neonicotinoid insecticides. Neonicotinoids have caused controversy since Bayer introduced them in the 1990s and have been blamed by some beekeepers and environmental campaigners as a potential cause of colony collapse disorder. Seen first in [...]
An important ingredient of honey!
Can fructose, an integral ingredient of honey be dangerous? Well a new review on fructose in an issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN) indicates just how dangerous this simple sugar may be claiming that excess fructose may play role in diabetes, obesity and other [...]
In a remarkable piece of research carried out in Israel, physicists from Tel Aviv University have discovered that a hornet’s outer shell can harvest solar power
Everyone knows that in the process of photosynthesis, plants take the sun’s energy and convert it to electrical energy. Now a Tel Aviv University team has demonstrated how [...]
Researchers have found that tiny brains bees can solve a complex mathematical problem. Bumblebees can find the solution to a complex mathematical problem which keeps computers busy for days.
Scientists at the Royal Holloway College and Queen Mary College, University of London have discovered that bees learn to fly the shortest possible route between [...]
Most of us have held views on whether nature or nurture defines us but now bees are helping to answer this age old question.
The nature-nurture debate is a “giant step” closer to being resolved after scientists studying bees documented how environmental inputs can modify our genetic hardware. The researchers uncovered extensive molecular differences [...]
Earlier in this issue we reported on some research that indicated about the use of systemic neoconitoid insecticides. The research suggested that their use may lower the bees’ resistance to disease. This may explain why new research suggests that bee colony collapse may be associated with viral, fungal infection.
The sudden death of bee [...]
The healing properties of propolis—a mixture of resin and wax made by honey bees to seal and sterilize their hives—have been known for many years. But its use in medicine and food supplements has been limited because the sticky substance is not water soluble and has a strong, off-putting smell.
Now researchers at the [...]
Can bees tell if nectar is toxic or not? It seems that once they have found out, they can learn to avoid it.
Honeybees can learn to avoid nectar containing natural plant toxins but will eat it when there is no alternative, scientists at Newcastle University have found. This means that in areas dominated [...]
Bees can see colours but they perceive the world differently to us, including variations in hue that we cannot ourselves distinguish. Now, in some fascinating research, scientists at Queen Mary and Imperial college, University of have developed ‘FReD’ — the Floral Reflectance Database—which holds data on what colours flowers appear to be, to bees. [...]
Sylvia Plath (October 27, 1932–February 11, 1963) was an American poet, novelist and short story writer. Born in Massachusetts, she studied at Smith College and Newnham College, Cambridge before receiving acclaim as a professional poet and writer. She married fellow poet Ted Hughes in 1956 and they lived together first in the United States [...]
Fesenjan-e Bademjan–Eggplant (Aubergines) with Pomegranate Braise
A DISH FROM PERSIA (or is it Iran?)
This recipe may need a couple of specialist ingredients but if you can get hold of them it is worth the effort. If done well it will impress your dinner guests especially if they are vegetarian. I had trouble keeping [...]
2 BOOKS REVIEWED THIS MONTH
1. THE BEEKEEPER’S HANDBOOK: OR TWENTY-TWO YEARS’ EXPERIENCE IN QUEEN REARING by Henry Alley. 185 pages. Black and white. Soft cover. £16
ISBN: 9781 904 846680
Reviewed on behalf of Northern Bee Books
This is a reprint of Alley’s 1883 queen rearing manual. It includes two chapters by [...]
“Like the bee, we should make our industry our amusement”
Oliver Goldsmith
Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1730 – 4 April 1774) was an Irish writer, poet, and physician known for his novel The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), his pastoral poem The Deserted Village (1770) (written in memory of his brother), and his plays The [...]
