A Frightening Review of Recent Chemical Company Megamergers, Not to Mention the Thousands of Lawsuits Against the Tragic Effects

MARC STEINER: In 2016 I covered the battle by farmers and environmentalists to stop Bayer and Monsanto from merging into one company. The Department of Justice just ruled that the merger of these two corporate giants could take place. You know the name Bayer as aspirin. You might take an Aleve now and then for your … More A Frightening Review of Recent Chemical Company Megamergers, Not to Mention the Thousands of Lawsuits Against the Tragic Effects

Laws of attraction: Pollinators use multiple cues to identify flowers across continents

Source: National Centre for Biological SciencesSummary:Although at least 75 percent of our crop species depend on animal pollinators, little is known about their flower preferences. As global insect populations decline, it is of utmost importance for us to understand what factors attract wild pollinators to flowers, and how these preferences differ in the face of … More Laws of attraction: Pollinators use multiple cues to identify flowers across continents

Honey bees have sharper eyesight than we thought

Bees have much better vision than was previously known, offering new insights into the lives of honey bees, and new opportunities for translating this knowledge into fields such as robot vision, outlines a new study. This is a western honey bee, also known as a European honey bee (Apis mellifera). Researchers at Lund University, Sweden, … More Honey bees have sharper eyesight than we thought

To save honey bees, human behavior must change

Poor management practices have enabled spread of bee pathogens, bee researcher argues In the search for answers to the complex health problems and colony losses experienced by honey bees in recent years, it may be time for professionals and hobbyists in the beekeeping industry to look in the mirror. In a research essay to be … More To save honey bees, human behavior must change

Scientists track gene activity when honey bees do and don’t eat honey: Significant differences depending on diet

Many beekeepers feed their honey bees sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup when times are lean inside the hive. This practice has come under scrutiny, however, in response to colony collapse disorder, the massive — and as yet not fully explained — annual die-off of honey bees in the U.S. and Europe. Some suspect that inadequate … More Scientists track gene activity when honey bees do and don’t eat honey: Significant differences depending on diet

New data unearths pesticide peril in beehives

Honeybees create honey in their hive through the topped-out combs, and they keep beebread — their food — in the other combs. Credit: © gudrin / Fotolia Honeybees — employed to pollinate crops during the blooming season — encounter danger due to lingering and wandering pesticides, according to a new Cornell University study that analyzed … More New data unearths pesticide peril in beehives

Neonics are climbing up the food chain!

Global activist group ‘Sum Of Us‘ has released a startling report indicating the lethal impact of neonicotinoid pesticides on birds. The dangerous chemicals, known to cause an increase in the rate of honey bee deaths, were found to increase the death of birds in several parts of the world. So what does this mean? Neonicotinoids are not restricted to … More Neonics are climbing up the food chain!