Category Archives: People

First View of a Bee’s Innards

Posted on February 12, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Today’s birthdays include two notables whom you’ve likely heard of (Lincoln and Darwin, both born on the same day in 1809), and one luminary you’ve perhaps not encountered: Jan Swammerdam (1637-1680), also born on February 12. Though we have Darwin … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Culture, or lack thereof, History, People | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

155th Anniversary of a Botany Professor

Posted on January 14, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Just a short post today, and though it’s about genetics and botany, bees (my usual blog subject) are mentioned only indirectly.  It’s the 155th anniversary of the birth of Carrie Derick – one of the world’s first geneticists. Derick was … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Genetics, History, People | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Langstroth, the Christmas Gift

Posted on December 25, 2016 by Ron Miksha

I’m repeating a blog which I posted on Christmas Day last year. It’s about the inventor of modern beekeeping, L.L. Langstroth. Enjoy! He invented modern beekeeping, making it easier, more productive, and less stressful for bees. However, Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Books, History, Hives and Combs, People | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

A Metaphysical Life

Posted on November 5, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Today is the  anniversary of the birth of one of my beekeeper-heroes, Professor Richard Taylor. He was an early champion of the round comb honey system, a commercial beekeeper with just 300 hives, and he was a philosopher who wrote … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Comb Honey, Commercial Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, History, People | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Steve Vai, Beekeeper

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Steve Vai, guitar wizard extraordinaire, performs in Calgary tomorrow night at the Jack Singer Hall. I won’t be there. I respect his talent immensely and as an ex-guitar guy myself (albeit, three or four orders of magnitude below Mr Vai), … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, People | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Morgan Freeman’s Bees

Posted on September 30, 2016 by Ron Miksha

By now, most beekeepers have heard that Morgan Freeman is a beekeeper. Morgan Freeman is incredible. Whether you enjoyed him driving over Miss Daisy or just gaining redemption after Shawshank, you likely admired the way the man can perform. I’ve … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, People | Tagged | 8 Comments

Remembering: Charles Valentine Riley

Posted on September 18, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Charles Valentine Riley (1843-1895) September 18 is the birthdate of British-American    entomologist     Charles Valentine Riley. Riley pioneered the scientific study of insect pests and their impact on agriculture.   He founded the US Department of Agriculture’s Division of Entomology and was … Continue reading →

Posted in Diseases and Pests, Ecology, History, People | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The Man Who Made Killer Bees

Posted on September 9, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Today (September 9) is the 94th birthday of Warwick Estevam Kerr, the man who made the Killer Bees. Just like his bees, Kerr comes from hot, tropical Brazil. And just like his bees, Dr Kerr has been much maligned and … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Genetics, People, Science | Tagged , , , , , | 22 Comments

It Doesn’t Take an Einstein

Posted on August 30, 2016 by Ron Miksha

You’ve seen the memes. Albert Einstein is pictured with a caption that says “if honey bees disappear from earth, humans would be dead within 4 years!”  I got tired of seeing this repeated and decided to dig deeper than  the … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, People, Save the Bees | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Bee Rustlers on the Rise

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Ron Miksha

In the old days, cowboys occasionally stole cows. Horse thieves were sometimes hanged. Not always, though. Back in Val Marie, Saskatchewan, a cattle town that I lived in for ten years, there was a fellow named Joseph Ernest Nephtali Dufault … Continue reading →

Posted in Commercial Beekeeping, Movies, People, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments