Vermont Beekeepers Association

Apiology

The study of honeybees...

Drone and Worker Brood Microclimates Are Regulated Differentially in Honey Bees, Apis mellifera

Honey bee (Apis mellifera) drones and workers show differences in morphology, physiology, and behavior. Because the functions of drones are more related to colony reproduction, and those of workers relate to both survival and reproduction, we hypothesize that the microclimate for worker brood is more precisely regulated than that of drone brood.

More:Microclimate

'Intensive' beekeeping not to blame for common bee diseases

More "intensive" beekeeping does not raise the risk of diseases that harm or kill the insects, new research suggests.

Intensive agriculture—where animals or plants are kept crowded together in very high densities—is thought to result in higher rates of disease spreading.

But researchers from the University of Exeter and the University of California, Berkeley found this is not the case for honeybees.

More:Intensive

RNA virus spillover from managed honeybees (Apis mellifera) to wild bumblebees (Bombus spp.)

The decline of many bumblebee species (Bombus spp.) has been linked to an increased prevalence of pathogens caused by spillover from managed bees. Although poorly understood, RNA viruses are suspected of moving from managed honeybees (Apis mellifera) into wild bumblebees through shared floral resources.

More:Bombus

Seasonal variation of pollen collected by honey bees (Apis mellifera) in developed areas across four regions in the United States

For honey bees (Apis mellifera), colony maintenance and growth are highly dependent on worker foragers obtaining sufficient resources from flowering plants year round. Despite the importance of floral diversity for proper bee nutrition, urban development has drastically altered resource availability and diversity for these important pollinators.

More: Pollendiversity

Toward Audio Beehive Monitoring: Deep Learning vs. Standard Machine Learning in Classifying Beehive Audio Samples

Electronic beehive monitoring extracts critical information on colony behavior and phenology without invasive beehive inspections and transportation costs. As an integral component of electronic beehive monitoring, audio beehive monitoring has the potential to automate the identification of various stressors for honeybee colonies from beehive audio sample

More:AudioMonitoring

Reduced density and visually complex apiaries reduce parasite load and promote honey production and overwintering survival in honey bees

Managed honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies are kept at much greater densities than naturally occurring feral or wild colonies, which may have detrimental effects on colony health and survival, disease spread, and drifting behavior (bee movement between natal and non-natal colonies).

More:HoneybeeDrift

The North American Pollinator Protection Campaign Scientists Report on Honey Bee Stressors

The North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) is a collaborative group of scientists, government agencies, NGO’s, private industries and agricultural and environmental concerns that work together to bring the plight of pollinators to national attention and to be the most trusted resource for information and behaviors in support of pollinating animals and the plants with which they interact.

More:Pollinator Protection

Beekeeping in Vermont

Beekeeper Basics at CVU

Have you thought about keeping bees? This is the opportunity to learn more about these vital and fascinating creatures providing so much of our food. The instructors have over 50 years of experience among them. The three sessions will enlighten, and maybe inspire, you to start a few hives of your own or learn more about your bee passion. Plenty of question-and-answer time and all the info needed to start your own operation. Visit the CVUHS website and search for Beekeeping!

Instructor: Vermont Beekeepers Association's Bill Mares & Kate Blofson Fee: $45 Limit: 30

Details: Published: 07 January 2019 07 January 2019

2019 VBA Winter Meeting Agenda

Agenda for VBA Winter Meeting

January 29, 2019

Location: Essex Junction Fairgrounds - Blue Ribbon Pavilion
Miller North Conference Rooms A & B

Details: Published: 01 January 2019 01 January 2019

Photos Requested

For our book on Vermont beekeeping history, we are looking for any digital photos of hive damage from Hurricane Irene.

If you have any, please send to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Thanks,

Bill Mares and Ross Conrad

Details: Published: 29 December 2018 29 December 2018

VBA Gets a Nod in New Vermont Video

Details: Published: 28 November 2018 28 November 2018

The Secret to Better Berries? Wild Bees

First study to reveal wild bees’ impacts on blueberry size, quality from UVM's Gund Institute for Environment.

Want bigger, faster-growing blueberries? New research shows wild bees are an essential secret ingredient in larger and better blueberry yields – producing plumper, faster-ripening berries.

Details: Published: 28 November 2018 28 November 2018

Summer 2019 Keynote Speaker Announced

Humberto Boncristiani, has been confirmed as the keynote speaker for the Vermont Beekeepers Association Summer 2019 meeting on July 13.

Dr. Boncristiani is the honey bee husbandry applied researcher at the University of Florida Honey Bee Research and Extension Lab. Boncristiani has a diverse background in honey bee research, having worked in a government institution (USDA), academia (UNCG, UMD), private industry, with the National Research Council, and having come from a beekeeping family. At the Honey Bee Research and Extension Lab, Boncristiani conducts honey bee husbandry research that is directly applicable to commercial beekeeper operations in the state of Florida and across the country.

Details: Published: 01 November 2018 01 November 2018