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.

Rise of the Bee Thieves

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Hive theft has been around ever since there were beehives and beekeepers. For example, the classic watercolour of Cupid, the Honey Thief, by Dürer was painted in 1514. Jumping ahead just a little, during the early 1980s, when I bee-kept … Continue reading →

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The Empty Beekeeper

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Ron Miksha

At first it felt a bit creepy when my wife texted this picture of an empty beekeeper holding my book. Then I was flattered. My wife was attending the Calgary Science Fair where our son’s entry (a behavioural-science study) was … Continue reading →

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Dead and Dying

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Ron Miksha

California almond pollination season is finished. And so are many of the bees which made the trip to the west coast to participate in the largest honey bee mosh pit ever in the history of beekeeping. (For those of you … Continue reading →

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The Royal Bee?

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Ron Miksha

English royalty dropped by for tea in New Zealand. You know how hard it is to find that special gift for out-of-town visitors? Well, try entertaining a prince and his family. The Royals probably have everything they need. Probably. So … Continue reading →

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World Apitherapy Day

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Ron Miksha

March 30 is World Apitherapy Day. It is celebrated on this day because it’s the birthdate of one of the most important early promoters of happy bee stings – a chap named Filip Terč, whom you see glaring at you … Continue reading →

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Ecological Boldness

Posted on March 23, 2014 by Ron Miksha

“Corporate profits trumping ecological needs,” according to the National Farmers Union’s own website. That rather provocative statement is from the NFU’s Vice President of Policy, Ann Slater. Remembering the days when much of the NFU’s musings were simply echoes of … Continue reading →

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What we don’t know

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Sometimes I am surprised by what we don’t know about bees. You would think we’d have it all figured out by now. I’m not talking about knowing when to wrap or unwrap hives; start grafting queen cells; split hives; or … Continue reading →

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About time

Posted on March 8, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Ever wonder why it’s called Savings Time? Ben Franklin, America’s first  inventor/publisher/scientist/states-man/postmaster proposed the idea back in 1760 as a way to save money. You see, his father had been a candle maker so little Ben realized from an early … Continue reading →

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Cold, eh?

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Well this is a bit unfortunate. It was minus 31 in Calgary this morning, the wind picked up and it felt like minus 50. That’s about the same weather whether Fahrenheit or Celsius – the scales meet at -40. So, … Continue reading →

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Sochi Beekeepers

Posted on February 22, 2014 by Ron Miksha

As I was watching the CBC evening national news, I was startled to see a piece on beekeeping near Sochi, Russia. The reporter talked about a group of folks called the Adyghe (Ah-dee-gee), or Circassian, people who have lived in … Continue reading →

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