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.

May Flowers and May Frosts

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Ron Miksha

My kids picked these flowers as a Mother’s Day gift for my wife. All the blossoms were collected from the yard around our house. Nice bouquet, eh? There is not much in the vase that a honey bee would find … Continue reading →

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Mother’s Day at the Hive

Posted on May 10, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Biologists have been debating the role that mixed genetic heritage plays in your beehive. As children, we learned that there are three castes of honey bees – queen, workers, and drones. [That’s wrong – it’s two castes (queen/worker) and two … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Queens, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Searching for Flowers

Posted on April 25, 2015 by Ron Miksha

I had a road trip earlier this week and was struck by the paucity of natural bling-bling. It’s almost May. Where are the flowers? I ask this lachrymose question every spring, especially after we’ve had a pleasant string plus 20 … Continue reading →

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Bee Time Again: Lessons from the Hive

Posted on April 24, 2015 by Ron Miksha

A few months ago, I had high praise for Mark Winston’s latest book, Bee Time: Lessons from the Hive. Now I have heard that Winston’s book has been awarded the prestigious Canadian Science Writers Association recognition as 2014’s best “science … Continue reading →

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Solving the World’s Problems

Posted on April 23, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Closing in on the Rockies, near Bragg Creek, Alberta For the past short while I’ve enjoyed meeting some beekeeping friends each month. We have a two-hour coffee and try to figure out how we can fix the world. Well, actually, … Continue reading →

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A 60-year-old Image Problem

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Ron Miksha

After 60 years, the good people of Tisdale, Saskatchewan, are thinking of changing their slogan from “Land of Rape and Honey” to . . . something else. Well, it’s about time. Every town and village should reconsider logos, symbols, signs, … Continue reading →

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Beekeepers’ Problems Solved

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Ron Miksha

A publisher sent a new beekeeping book to me. As usual, I promised to read and review it – but warned the publisher that I am an awfully slow reader, and even worse – I can be awkwardly honest. (As … Continue reading →

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“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