Museum collections key to generating dataset spanning 140 years A new study shows that although certain bumble bees are at risk, other bee species in the northeastern United States persisted across a 140-year period despite expanding human populations and changing land use. Led by Rutgers University and based extensively on historical specimens from the American Museum of Natural History and nine …
by MATT SHIPMAN (Courtesy North Carolina State University News Service, Raleigh, NC) A new long-term study of honey bee health has found that a little-understood disease study authors are calling “idiopathic brood disease syndrome” (IBDS), which kills off bee larvae, is the largest risk factor for predicting the death of a bee colony. “Historically, we’ve seen symptoms similar to IBDS associated with viruses …
University of Calgary Researcher Part of International Team Studying Agricultural Pollination Researchers studying data from 600 fields in 20 countries have found that managed honey bees are not as successful at pollinating crops as wild insects, primarily wild bees, suggesting the continuing loss of wild insects in many agricultural landscapes has negative consequences for crop harvests. The study, which prompts an urgent …
Firestone, Colo., February 25, 2013 – The National Honey Board has approved funding for nine new research projects focusing on honey bee health. The Board’s Research Committee, with input from a panel of experts, selected the projects from 23 proposals received from researchers around the world.   The total dollar commitment for the nine projects is $165,685. In addition, the Board’s …
Foraging bees prefer contrasting colors rather than stripes when they select flowers Flower colors that contrast with their background are more important to foraging bees than patterns of colored veins on pale flowers according to new research, by Heather Whitney from the University of Cambridge in the UK, and her colleagues. Their observation of how patterns of pigmentation on flower petals …
The public is reminded that indictments and informations contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, courts must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing …
by CHRIS BENNETT WESTERN FARM PRESS Honey, due to foreign imports, is one of the most tainted foods in America, and China has a sticky finger in almost every pot. The fix is in and China has essentially set up a network of honey chop shops to the tune of billions in profit. Grab the bear bottle of honey off the Walmart shelf …
by CHRIS BENNETT WESTERN FARM PRESS A neonicotinoid ban might cost Europe up to $23 billion and put 50,000 jobs on the chopping block. For U.S. agriculture and California, the neonicotinoid outcome in Europe may serve as a regulatory road map. Honey bees are a massive global business, responsible for a third of the world’s food production. Honey bees provide $15 billion in added …