Category Archives: Strange, Odd Stuff
Cats and Dogs, Living Together
There’s a scene in Ghost Busters where Bill Murray describes the doom awaiting the world when the captured ghosts are released: “…human sacrifice, cats and dogs living together…” It’s hard to image any fate worse for civilization, eh? Such fear … Continue reading
Shake, Rattle, Roll: Our Little Earthquake
I live in one of the less shaky parts of the world. I don’t think that Calgary has ever had a damaging earthquake. (Granted, the city isn’t much over a hundred years old, so it’s a short history.) When the … Continue reading
Posted in Friends, Honey, Queens, Science, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged beekeeping, Chile, earthquake
4 Comments
Please Don’t Burn the Bees
Since most people are radically pro-bee, it shocks me when I come across stories about people burning swarms to destroy them. Such arrogance. Such ignorance. Or maybe, pathetic panic is at work. There are always better options than firing your … Continue reading
The Bees at Times Square
New York City beekeeper Andrew Cote just captured a swarm high above Times Square. The bees were perched on a ledge and the beekeeper went to their rescue, boxing them up before they jumped to their death. In coastal New … Continue reading
Posted in Save the Bees, Strange, Odd Stuff, Swarms
Tagged New York City, Swarms, urban beekeeping
1 Comment
Keeping the Cougars out of your Bee Yard
Ever been chased by a mountain lion? How about a cougar, panther, or puma? Me neither, but I’ve probably passed within metres of all four. (I’m told that they’re all the same species – Puma concolor.) A new study from … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Yards, Beekeeping, Diseases and Pests, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged bears, grizzly bears, puma
5 Comments
National Pollinator Week: Shrews and Mongooses, too.
National Pollinator Week is June 19 – June 25, but summer is an odd time of year to celebrate pollinators. The big honey bee migration to California’s almonds ended in March. Bees, birds, bats, and butterflies have finished their work … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Honey Plants, Humour, Pollination, Save the Bees, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged China, elephants, Pollination, pollinators
3 Comments
The Serious Lawn
Do we take lawn care too seriously? Whether we are wasting water on Kentucky bluegrass in the great American southwest, or soaking tonnes of weedkiller and insecticide into pleasant little villages across the continent, much of our obsession is just … Continue reading
Fishing Bait That Eats Plastic
Hundreds of diseases and pests attack honey bees. One of the oldest known hive invaders is the wax moth. Aristotle had trouble keeping them out of his hives so maybe you do, too. Wax moths come in two flavours – … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Diseases and Pests, Science, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged beeswax, environment, plastics, wax moths
9 Comments
Burt’s Cabin Tour
Burt Shavitz, of Burt’s Bees, died two years ago. A photographer (for Life and Time) from Manhattan, he settled near Bangor, Maine, in the 1960s. There, he discovered beekeeping. Although Maine is one of the worst places in North America … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Hive Products, People, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged Burt Shavitz, Burt's Bees, Maine
3 Comments
Bad Beekeeping Blog 