Category Archives: Native Bees

Not the only bees in town

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Ron Miksha

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 , , | 7 Comments

World Bee Day 2021

Posted on May 20, 2021 by Ron Miksha

World Bee Day, 2021: World Bee Day is on May 20 of each year. It’s not just about honey bees. Although the idea arose in Slovenia, a little country that’s really big on honey-bee keeping, it’s also a celebration of … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, History, Native Bees, Outreach, People, Save the Bees | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Icelandic Bees

Posted on April 24, 2021 by Ron Miksha

Iceland is more than spectacular volcanoes, ground quakes and rupturing continents. It has bees, too. Some say that the first founder bumble bee blew in with the wind. Others think that Iceland’s first bumble bee hitched a ride aboard a … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Native Bees, Travels | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Should you feed pollen supplement?

Posted on April 3, 2021 by Ron Miksha

In mid-March, Stevo Sun, a Calgary resident, sent some gorgeous pictures of honey bees foraging on silver maple. Maple is an ornamental here, at our elevation and latitude. But for less than $250, you can pick up a young tree … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Honey Plants, Native Bees | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Resolutions

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Ron Miksha

Most of my New Years’ days have passed without resolutions. This year, I resolved, would be different. Along with the typical (exercise more and eat less), the necessary (write more), the obvious (finish that grad degree), the impossible (learn Hungarian), … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Native Bees, Personal, Save the Bees | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Interview at CJSW with Ian Perry

Posted on December 19, 2019 by Ron Miksha

A couple of months ago, I was invited to chat about my research with Ian Perry, who runs a radio/podcast interview program (Keeping Green) at the University of Calgary’s CJSW. Ian is interviewing people who are studying ecology in western … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Native Bees, Personal, Science | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Apimondia 2019: Thursday (some presentations)

Posted on September 16, 2019 by Ron Miksha

On Thursday at the Montreal Apimondia, I gave a presentation about the average distance bees fly while foraging. The full title was Foraging distances of commercially-deployed bees: a meta-analysis.  When I find some time, I’ll do a voice-over and create … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Commercial Beekeeping, Ecology, Native Bees, Pollination, Science | Tagged , | 1 Comment

World Bee Day 2019

Posted on May 20, 2019 by Ron Miksha

World Bee Day, May 20 of each year,  is not just about honey bees. Although the idea arose in Slovenia, a little country that’s really big on honey-bee keeping, it’s also a celebration of all the world’s bees. About 20,000 … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecology, History, Native Bees, Outreach, Save the Bees | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Bees learn to drive tiny cars

Posted on April 10, 2019 by Ron Miksha

I wouldn’t believe this if I had seen it with my own eyes! Sam Droege, bee scientist extraordinaire, has a USGS Flickr website populated with great bee photographs. Last week, somewhere around April first, Sam posted the results of some … Continue reading →

Posted in Humour, Native Bees, Science, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 4 Comments