Category Archives: Strange, Odd Stuff

Bee’s Eye View

Posted on May 27, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Looking down from a light aircraft gives insights you just can’t match on the ground. At 6,000 feet, you appreciate how close flowers are along a beeline from hive to field. Beeing in the air is useful for a beekeeper … Continue reading →

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Fishing Bait That Eats Plastic

Posted on April 30, 2017 by Ron Miksha

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 , , , | 9 Comments

Burt’s Cabin Tour

Posted on April 26, 2017 by Ron Miksha

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 , , | 3 Comments

Black ‘Pollen’ in March

Posted on March 19, 2017 by Ron Miksha

A friend sent this great picture of a honey bee trucking home some very dark pollen today. Since flowers are not yet blooming here in Calgary, I’m pretty sure that the ‘pollen’ is coffee. Bees have been known to gather … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , , | 14 Comments

Maple Syrup is Dark

Posted on February 26, 2017 by Ron Miksha

It’s February. Maple syrup time in Quebec. The saps are flowing! I live in western Canada (no maple syrup trees here on the windy prairies) so I don’t think a lot about the sugar tapping going on at the moment … Continue reading →

Posted in Honey, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , , , | 14 Comments

Bees That Watch Bees

Posted on January 3, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Picture this. A bee with her tiny face pressed against a window, spying on other bees so she can see where the treasure is hidden. Sounds ridiculous to me, but it turns out to be true. The experiment In 2013, … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Biology, Science, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Non-science Brains as Scientists

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Ron Miksha

It seems that youngsters who are not particularly gifted in science and math are more likely to want a science job later in life. Kids who excel in science are less likely to want to be scientists. At least, that’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

A Century of Honey Songs

Posted on December 18, 2016 by Ron Miksha

It’s Sunday morning, just a week before Christmas. I’m hoping that your bee work is done and you have some time to listen to a few tunes from honey-throated singers and sticky-fingered musicians. Our first gift to you is Flight … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Movies, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Some Ambrosia

Posted on December 7, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Ambrosia. n. nectar; food or drink of the Greek gods which confers longevity Break out the mead – it’s St. Ambrose Day! Ambrose is the patron saint of beekeepers, a task he’s had since the day in 340 when he … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, History, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Lawsuits Amidst Toxic Allegations

Posted on December 1, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Australia is having a food fight.  Well, a honey fight, actually, and there are lessons aplenty to be found in it.  First off, a Save the Bees gentleman, Simon Mulvany, of Melbourne, launched a name-calling campaign against Australian honey packer … Continue reading →

Posted in Commercial Beekeeping, Honey, Save the Bees, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments