Category Archives: Ecology
Bees flying high
Almost every time I teach a beginning beekeeping course, a student or two comes forward to whisper: “If I move my bees to a patch of cannabis, will I get weedy honey?” I tell them that cannabis buds don’t secrete … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, History, Honey, Honey Plants, People, Personal, Podcasts, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged Books, cannabis, Charles Butler, Eva Crane, hallucinogenic honey, honey, Joe Rogan, mad honey, Michael Pollen, Nepal, psychedelics, rhododendrons
3 Comments
The Native and Non-Native Bee Debate
A few days ago, I sat down with the folks at Beekeeping Today Podcast to talk about how our non-native honey bees may affect native bees. Jeff Ott and Becky Masterman were informed, sympathetic interviewers. I had a great time … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, Native Bees, Outreach, Personal, Podcasts, Save the Bees
Tagged Calgary, Native Bees, podcast, urban beekeeping
2 Comments
Support the Students
I don’t usually ask readers to help (even with good causes), but you will feel great about this one. The University of Calgary, where I am looking at the interaction between honey bees and native bees, has a smart group … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Ecology, Native Bees, Outreach, Save the Bees
Tagged bees, Calgary, University of Calgary
2 Comments
April 7: Day in the bees
April 7. Our backyard hives are collecting real pollen! Last week, I showed you some fake pollen coming into the colonies. Nothing beats the real stuff. Although desperate honey bees will carry worthless sawdust as a pollen supplement, nothing inspires … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Ecology, Native Bees, Personal
Tagged Alberta, Calgary, honey bees, pollen, pollen substitutes, urban beekeeping
5 Comments
EO Wilson, 92, has left the lab
The entire Earth was Ed Wilson’s lab. When his death was announced on Monday, I knew that I wanted to write a few words words in his honour, but I also knew that this would be a difficult task. One … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Biology, Books, Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, History, People, Science
Tagged bees, biodiversity, EO Wilson
8 Comments
Look at me! I’m green!
A Calgary oil company’s office tower has a bee just around the corner. This beautiful wall-poster points the way to the bee. Yes, ‘the bee’ according to the sign. I would be quite embarrassed if I had allowed such a … Continue reading
Bees Kill Endangered Penguins
Well, this isn’t a nice story. Apparently 63 endangered African penguins were stung to death by honey bees last week. My first thought, of course, was that the culprit was one of the more vicious African honey bees – Apis … Continue reading
Posted in Ecology, Killer Bees, Stings, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged bee stings, Cape bees, penguins
1 Comment
Blue and Green in the Flower Patch
Good scientists do their best to remove bias from their observations and experiments. Statistical methods such as blocking, double-blind trials, use of appropriate controls, and randomization are among their key tools. Results are suspect when hypotheses are designed after data … Continue reading
Not the only bees in town
Although my life has centred on honey bees, I realize that they are not the only bee species in town. Here in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, we have about 200 species of bees – from giant bumble bees to rather petite … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Ecology, Friends, Native Bees, Outreach
Tagged Alberta, bumblebees, Calgary
8 Comments
The Story of my Life (in less than two hours)
I had a wonderful interview with Sylvia and Luca from Vitamina Bee, an Italian videography/website. We touched on everything from veganism to bee-on-bee competition, the history of beekeeping, my Master’s research, and my early life on a farm with nine … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Books, Commercial Beekeeping, Ecology, History, Personal
Tagged Bad Beekeeping, beekeeping in Italy, honey bees, Saskatchewan, video, Vitamina Bee
1 Comment
Bad Beekeeping Blog 