Category Archives: Save the Bees

Plight of the Bumblebees

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Forty years ago, near Florida’s Ocala National Forest, I took the photos seen in today’s blog. This is a bumblebee nest, accidentally uncovered and exposed on the forest floor, in the winter of 1974 in central Florida. You can see … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Climate, Ecology, Save the Bees | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Caught in the middle

Posted on October 12, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Are they staying or are they going? The Globe and Mail, “Canada’s newspaper,” has an editorial written by Margaret Wente. She calls her piece “Caught in the Middle of the Bee War” and it is about the vanishing honey bees. … Continue reading →

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Bees Back Up on their Knees?

Posted on September 25, 2014 by Ron Miksha

In today’s unlikely Op-Ed article in the New York Times: Are Bees Back up on their Knees? beekeeper Noah Wilson-Rich makes the case that the worst of the mysterious colony collapse syndrome may be over. He reviews what many of … Continue reading →

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Neonicotinoids and western Canada

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Ron Miksha

I am still trying to understand why neonic-otinoids have not been a problem in western Canada. 40% of all seeded crops in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta are canola. And 100% of the seed is treated with neonics. So, at least … Continue reading →

Posted in Honey Plants, Pesticides, Save the Bees | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

See You in Court

Posted on September 4, 2014 by Ron Miksha

A few hours ago, Bayer and Syngenta were hit with a $450 million lawsuit for producing a pesticide which has allegedly hurt beekeepers’ businesses. This might be the largest claim ever filed in the history of beekeeping. Two Ontario honey-producing … Continue reading →

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Robo-Bees to the Rescue!

Posted on August 24, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Beekeepers are having a tough time keeping their hives alive. So far, they have been succeeding – there are more colonies of honey bees in the world now than there were 20 years ago. (Contrary to hype, honey bees are … Continue reading →

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Under surveillance

Posted on August 6, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Alberta beekeepers have initiated a nation-wide program to monitor the health of Canadian bees. Even though Alberta has been largely untouched by heavy losses (so far), the Alberta Beekeepers Commission wants to stay ahead of potential disaster. Alberta beekeepers lost … Continue reading →

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Bee People

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Ron Miksha

I previewed a new beekeeping movie, something a little different. I have to give Bee People a mixed review. I’ll walk through some of what I liked, do my thumbs down bit, then try to wrap up with some overall … Continue reading →

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Our Bees, Ourselves

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Interesting Op-Ed column in the New York Times. Mark Winston, a senior prof at British Columbia’s Simon Fraser, wrote about the widespread collapse of honey bees. Winston is one of those super-brains who studied bees and entomology for years and … Continue reading →

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Alberta deadline

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Ron Miksha

Sorry I was late posting this. Hope you are not in big trouble now. But Albertans who keep honey bees or who own beekeeping equipment are required – by law – to register as a beekeeper by June 29 of … Continue reading →

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