by Kathy Keatley Garvey UC Davis Dept. of Entomology Eric Mussen DAVIS, CALIF.--Honey bee guru Eric Mussen, Extension apiculturist and member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology faculty since 1976, has received scores of awards during his career, and now he’s received one from his alma mater. Mussen has been named the recipient of the 2013 Alexander Hodson Graduate Alumni Award from the …
California’s 2012 almond acreage is estimated at 870,000 acres, up 4 percent from the 2011 acreage of 835,000. Of the total acreage for 2012, 790,000 acres were bearing and 80,000 acres were non-bearing. Preliminary bearing acreage for 2013 is estimated at 810,000 acres. Nonpareil continued to be the leading variety, followed by Butte, Carmel, Monterey and Padre. Kern, Fresno, Merced and Stanislaus …
Ants foraging on nectar transmit yeasts that change sugar-chemistry and may affect subsequent pollinator visitations and plant fitness. Ant pollinators (Crematogaster auberti) foraging on a female flower of Cytinus hypocistis. Credit: Courtesy of Clara de Vega and Carlos M. Herrera. Ants play a variety of important roles in many ecosystems. As frequent visitors to flowers, they can benefit plants in their role as …
The Bee Team: (from left) Eric Mussen, Neal Williams, Robbin Thorp, Lynn Kimsey and Brian Johnson. (Kathy Keatley Garvey Photo) by Kathy Keatley Garvey UC Davis Dept. of Entomology DAVIS, CA--“The Bee Team” at the University of California, Davis, has won a major award. Five faculty members from the Department of Entomology received the coveted team award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA), …
Randy Oliver, commercial beekeeper and scientist, has investigated and summarized the factors involved in colony losses this winter, including the contribution of pesticides. In this lengthy two-part analysis he has obtained many opinions from both commercial beekeepers and scientists. By now, most everyone has heard that honey bee colonies died in massive numbers this winter. Reporter Dan Rather, in his newscast …
New National Honey Board Members Sworn in. Firestone, Colo., April 17, 2013 – Several new Board members and alternates appointed by U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack last December attended the National Honey Board’s (NHB) first meeting of the year on April 9-10 in San Diego, California. Pictured here (from left to right) are Kimberly Coy, Marketing Specialist, USDA/AMS; Jill …
Dead Bees and Empty Hives Show the Extent of the Losses Oakdale, CA — U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Assistant Administrator, Jim Jones spent a day with beekeepers and almond growers to learn more about this year’s massive colony losses, and beekeepers’ concerns about the role of pesticides in the decline. The National Pollinator Defense Fund (NPDF) Board provided Jones with …
Véto-pharma is submitting approval applications for individual states and anticipates this process will be complete by the end of April. New York, NY –April 2, 2013 –Véto-pharma S.A., the French veterinary pharmaceutical company specializing in honeybee health, announced today that the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted Section 3 registration approval of its Apivar® miticide effective March 11, 2013. EPA …