Bumble bees living in the city have genes that differ from those of their relatives in the countryside. Although genetic differences are not major, they nevertheless may influence how well the insects adapt to their habitat. For example, urban bumble bees are probably better able to react to environmental challenges that come with city life, such as higher temperatures. These …
New crop pests often leaves farmers scrambling for new control methods. When pests hybridize and become resistant to pesticides, farmers often need to apply more insecticides to help rein in the damage. In South America, two megapests have hybridized and if they make their way north, it could mean trouble for America’s farmers. Australian scientists have confirmed the hybridization of two …
Honey bees prove an inspiration to system engineers, helping them better route internet traffic Bees? Great. Ants? Hit or miss. Slime mold amoebas? Fail. Though nature offers excellent design inspirations in some information technology systems, in other systems, it can bomb. Known for his work on The Honey Bee Algorithm, which tamed web traffic instabilities on servers by mimicking the behavior of …
Director of the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology at University of Illinois receives distinguished honor Dr. Gene Robinson, Director of the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology at University of Illinois, has been awarded the 2018 Wolf Prize in Agriculture for "leading the genomics revolution in the organismal and population biology of the honey bee." Awarded each year since …
For the first time, researchers have shown that Asian elephants in Sri Lanka are scared of honey bees, much like their African counterparts. Playbacks have been used for many years to explore the behavioral responses of African elephants to a suspected natural threat, but the research, published in Current Biology, is the first time this technique has been used to record …
Honey bees were one of the very first arthropods to have their genome sequenced. This initial sequencing effort was completed in 2006, funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute and the United States Department of Agriculture. Since then scientists have also sequenced the genomes of honey bee parasites/pathogens, including Varroa, Nosema and Paenibacillus larvae, which causes American Foulbrood. Two …
By T. DeLene Beeland CLEMSON, South Carolina — About two miles from the Clemson University campus, where 50,000 people gathered to gaze skyward during the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse, bee researcher Jennifer Tsuruda kept her eyes focused earthward to see how honey bees behaved when nighttime darkness momentarily interrupted afternoon sun. The lives of honey bees are intertwined with the sun. They …
You're invited to the 5th Annual Caribbean Bee College At the University of West Indies, Cave Hill Campus in Wanstead, Barbados November 1st - 4th, 2017 Hosted by the University of Florida Honey Bee Research and Extension Lab Click here to register or for more information Two Days of Training November 3rd and 4th will be the main training days for beekeepers and bee enthusiasts looking …