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.

“The bees are coming!” said the hotel.

Posted on April 10, 2015 by Ron Miksha

If you have been a beekeeper for a long time, you will remember the days when you had to hide your nasty habits (and your nasty bees) from the public. Bees were once very uncool. The Africanized bees terrorized America. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Bees are Good.

Posted on April 8, 2015 by Ron Miksha

This is one of the best things I’ve seen on the news in a long time. The American president is on the lawn on a beautiful spring afternoon. He’s reading Where the Wild Stings Are to a hundred kids who … Continue reading →

Posted in Humour, Stings | Tagged , | 2 Comments

What’s wrong with this picture?

Posted on March 20, 2015 by Ron Miksha

To celebrate spring, Google’s Doodle uses an artsy little bumblebee disturbing some pretty flowers. As a beekeeper I am always happy to see bee thingies, but I wish that such artists would consider a wee dab of natural science in … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecology, Honey Plants | Tagged , | Leave a comment

You, me, the bee, and the wind

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Saturday was Windsday here. The forecast claimed we would see record high temperatures and some wind. They were almost right with the temps – it was close to a record and continued the trend of the past two months: warm … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Science | Tagged | 2 Comments

Knowing Nothing

Posted on March 8, 2015 by Ron Miksha

When I wrote my book Bad Beekeeping, the title came to me as a response to meeting a pompous, self-absorbed beekeeper. You know the sort – the person with a year or two experience who has an undeservedly inflated ego. … Continue reading →

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Airport Honey

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Looking for a noisy place to keep some bees? Urban beekeepers struggle to find spots to set landing boards for their hives. Most towns and cities have limits on the number of hives that can be kept in the backyard. … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Yards, Beekeeping | Tagged | Leave a comment

Thermo-Zapper-Gun

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Ron Miksha

My 12-year-old ordered a laser gun from Amazon. Apparently it could burn your eyes out, but we are hoping not to test that. It’s a thermometer. The laser part is just a pointer, the laser actually has nothing to do … Continue reading →

Posted in Tools and Gadgets | Tagged | 1 Comment

Honey on tap?

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Ron Miksha

In the past, I’ve written rather cynically about the various kickstarter projects aimed at people who care about bees. Entrepreneurs have been sucking up cash to “Save the Bees” and to sponsor new beehive designs for quite a few years. … Continue reading →

Posted in Strange, Odd Stuff, Tools and Gadgets | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Ultimate Valentine

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Ron Miksha

I know, beekeepers usually are not sentimental. For most of us, Saint Valentine was some mythical character built upon Lupercalia, an occasion observed by the Romans for three days (February 13–15) each year, and intimately connected to fertility. Like many … Continue reading →

Posted in Comb Honey, History, Hives and Combs | Tagged | Leave a comment

Journeys in Books

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Ron Miksha

A reader of this blog asked if I would add his two books to the ones you see floating around the left edge of this page. I like beekeeping books and own several. Several hundred. A few are ancient classics, … Continue reading →

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