Humans have been exploiting bees as far back as the Stone Age, according to new research from the University of Bristol published in Nature today.   Previous evidence from prehistoric rock art is inferred to show honey hunters and Pharaonic Egyptian murals show early scenes of beekeeping. However, the close association between early farmers and the honeybee … More Early farmers exploited beehive products at least 8,500 years ago

While pesticides and pathogens pose clear threats to honey bee health, the need of bee colonies for balanced nutrition is gaining increasing appreciation. As colonies are kept in agricultural areas for crop pollination, they may encounter nutritional deficits when foraging predominantly on one pollen source. In California almond orchards for instance, 1.6 million colonies are … More Bees diversify diet to take the sting out of nutritional deficiencies

The sudden disappearances of the previous decade have been dwarfed by other pollinator problems BY SUSAN MILIUS It was one of the flashiest mysteries in the news about a decade ago — honeybee workers were vanishing fast for no clear reason. To this day, that puzzle has never been entirely solved, researchers acknowledge. And maybe it never … More The mystery of vanishing honeybees is still not definitively solved

Patagonia may lose its only native bumblebee species due to invasions by alien bee species sanctioned by government policy. In a paper published today in Journal of Applied Ecology, Marcelo Aizen from the Universidad Nacional del Comahue, Argentina, and colleagues from four countries draw attention to the severe conservation, economic and political consequences of intentional species … More Uncoordinated trade policies aid alien bee invasions

By Daniel Rubinoff on January 16, 2018   As winter bears down, thoughts of summer and flowers might seem far off, but now is the time to turn our attention to the plight of pollinators and make critical changes to how we manage our environment, and the crops that feed us. Every year the common honeybee, Apis mellifera, is trotted … More Feral honeybees pose a danger to native bees and the ecosystems that depend on them

  Fungicides are among the top contaminants of honey bee hives and can interfere with the bees’ ability to metabolize other pesticides. Credit: Photo by L. Brian Stauffer When given the choice, honey bee foragers prefer to collect sugar syrup laced with the fungicide chlorothalonil over sugar syrup alone, researchers report in the journal Scientific Reports. … More Agricultural fungicide attracts honey bees

  A team of ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists has demonstrated that eating honey after swallowing a button battery has the potential to reduce serious injuries in small children. Based on findings in laboratory animals, the research suggests that this common household product may significantly reduce morbidity and mortality from highly caustic batteries. “Button batteries … More Ingesting honey after swallowing button battery reduces injury and improves outcomes