Author Archives: Ron Miksha

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About Ron Miksha

Ron Miksha is a bee ecologist working at the University of Calgary. He is also a geophysicist and does a bit of science writing and blogging. Ron has worked as a radio broadcaster, a beekeeper, and Earth scientist. (Ask him about seismic waves.) He's based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Goodbye, Susan

Posted on June 26, 2019 by Ron Miksha

A friend whom I never met has passed away. Her memorial service was on the weekend. Susan Rudnicki was a regular reader and commented here frequently. If you’ve been following this blog over the past year or two, you have … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Friends | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

Pollinator Week 2019

Posted on June 17, 2019 by Ron Miksha

In the past three or four years, I began to notice that honey bees aren’t the only bees in the world. What a surprise! There are over 20,000 other versions. Some as big as elephants, some as small as pin … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, Outreach, Pollination | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Remembering Eva Crane: Beekeeper and Physicist

Posted on June 12, 2019 by Ron Miksha

June 12th. I have an excuse to write a bit about the amazing Ethel Eva Widdowson, born in London on June 12th, 1912. By age 30, she had defended her doctorate in nuclear physics, begun to teach at Sheffield University, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, History, People | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Do you know the queen colours?

Posted on June 11, 2019 by Ron Miksha

If you mark your queens, you should follow the international queen-colour code: White in 2016 and 2021, Yellow in 2017 and 2022, etc. This system has been around for decades because it’s uniform, consistent, and lets a beekeeper know the … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Queens, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged | 4 Comments

Can we learn old tricks?

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Ron Miksha

I have a small collection of old bee books, and I like searching them for new ideas. (If you can’t get new ideas from old books, what’s the point of history?) My favourite beekeeping books are the ones that tell … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, History, People | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Save the People

Posted on June 6, 2019 by Ron Miksha

A few decades ago, most prisons had farms. Inmates grew some of their own food while learning a few basic skills. That changed for a number of reasons, partly because of the tendency to lock everyone up if they couldn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Outreach | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Laying worker, new queen, or both?

Posted on June 4, 2019 by Ron Miksha

Following on yesterday’s post about laying workers, I thought I should add this important caveat.  If you have a new queen (from a split which was given a young caged queen, for example), you may occasionally find multiple eggs in … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Queens | Tagged , | 5 Comments

At least one of these bees is a laying worker

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Ron Miksha

At least one of the bees in the picture above is a laying worker. Can you spot her?  I can’t. But if you read this post to the end, you will have the answer – and a really nice bonus, … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Diseases and Pests, Queens, Science | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Are you listening to your bees?

Posted on May 26, 2019 by Ron Miksha

Experienced beekeepers approach their hives as one might enter a church or temple. With quiet respect. Once there, we listen. That’s an important part of our role.  The listening beekeeper knows in an instant if the colony is queenless or … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Diseases and Pests, Tools and Gadgets | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Another podcast you’ll like

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Ron Miksha

I’m a steady fan of two great beekeeping podcasts. Kiwimana, produced in New Zealand, is a nice mix of practical beekeeping, bee news stories,  and interviews with beekeepers. The PolliNation podcast, made up of bee chats with Dr Andony Melathopoulos … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Commercial Beekeeping | Tagged , | 3 Comments