BEE BULLETINS

photos: Near Guelph Ontario on April 11th, 2009, a sunny +7°C noon.

April 11th was one of the first sunny days of Spring. Some bees were foraging for nectar and pollen.

photo: Honey bees foraging on Siberian squill (Scilla siberica).

photo: Honey bees foraging on orange crocuses (Crocus spp.).

photo: Honey bees foraging on orange crocuses (Crocus spp.).

photo: Honey bees foraging on striped squill (Puskinia spp.).

photos: Near Guelph Ontario on February 8th, 2009; a sunny +1°C noon.

Spring dwindling is common, especially during periods of severe winter and extended spring. Older bees at the entrance of the hive are warmed by the sun, fly out, and are overcome by age, wind, and/or cold.

Spring dwindling is not to be confused with “Colony Collapse Disorder” or population dwindling caused by varroa mites.

photo: Over-wintering hives with dead bees in front.

photo: Dead bees in snow.

One of the most reported facts about honey bees:

One mouthful in three of the foods you eat directly or indirectly depends on pollination by honey bees.

This quote comes from a 2004 United States Department of Agriculture Report on honey bee benefits to agriculture and is referenced on countless honey bee-related web sites and news bulletins.

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Another commonly reported fact is that around the world we are experiencing decreasing honey bee populations:

Canada: Where have the bees gone? (Thanks Gary for posting this to our facebook site.)

New Zealand: Bee alert and alarmed

UK: Battle to save the honey bee

The solution?

Keep bees.

Plant nectar and pollen producing plants.

Support local beekeepers.

The following original publications are available at www.apidologie.org:

Szabo, T.I. and Lefkovitch, L.P. 1988. Fourth generation of closed population honeybee breeding. 2. Relationship between morphological and colony traits. Apidologie 19(3): 259-274. [article]

Szabo, T.I. and Lefkovitch, L.P. 1989. Effect of brood production and population size on honey production of honeybee colonies in Alberta, Canada. Apidologie 20(2): 157-163. [article]

Szabo, T.I. 1990 Morphometric characteristics of Apis cerana from Sri Lanka. Apidologie 21(6): 505-509. [abstract] [article]

Szabo, T.I. and L.P. Lefkovitch. 1992. Heritability of colour patterns in a closed population of honey bees. Apidologie 23: 151-159. [abstract] [article]

I discovered these sites while investigating beekeeping in ancient times and want to share them.

Honey bees in art date back to the Paleolithic era. You can see a Paleolithic cave painting on this site.

Man’s relationship with honeybees is as ancient as man himself.

This is photo from Beelore depicts beekeeping hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt:

Also from ancient Egypt:

When the Sun weeps a second time, and lets fall water from his eyes, it is changed into working bees; they work in the flowers of each kind, and honey and wax are produced instead of water.

From a first millennium BCE magical text, pSalt 825
S. Birch, Egyptian Magical Text, in S. Birch ed., Records of the Past, Vol.6, 1876

Source: http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/beekeeping.htm

You should always consult a health care practitioner or a pharmacist when you have questions about the health of your child. When you do, ask about the following studies on the effect of Honey, DM Cough Medicine, and No Treatment on nocturnal cough and sleep quality for children and their parents. The studies claim:

Significant differences in symptom improvement were detected between treatment groups, with honey consistently scoring the best and no treatment scoring the worst.

Sources from the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine:

Effect of Honey, Dextromethorphan, and No Treatment on Nocturnal Cough and Sleep Quality for Coughing Children and Their Parents

The Effect of Honey on Nocturnal Cough and Sleep Quality for Children and Their Parents

The rest of the story… Health Canada has decided that:

the labelling of cough and cold medicines for use in children must be changed by fall 2009 to say they should not be used in children less than 6 years of age. These products will also require enhanced labelling for children aged 6 to under 12, child resistant packaging…

Health Canada Advisories:

December 18 2008 - Health Canada Releases Decision on the Labelling of Cough and Cold Products for Children

October 11 2007 - Recommendations for the Appropriate Use of Cough and Cold Products in Children

March 12, 2005 - Health Canada Advises Consumers Not to Use “Cough Syrup Dm” Din 02015781 with Lot Numbers Starting with 2J29 and 3J29

These clips are a video advisory from Health Canada and a CBC News report on the topic:

This is a slideshow of extracting equipment.

photo: Uncapped honeycomb.

A complete bibliography of refereed research and miscellaneous bee related articles authored by Dr.Tibor I. Szabo is now available on this site.

photo:  A marked queen bee from selected stock and worker bees exhibiting hygienic behaviour by emptying all 25 cells in a 5×5 24 hour pin-prick hygienic test.

This is a slideshow of colonies being prepared for transport to New Brunswick, Canada. The bees were sent to pollinate blueberry flowers and came back with some very delicious blueberry honey.

We are spreading the word about honey bees on Facebook.  If you use Facebook and want to follow our stories or engage in bee-related discussion, you can now become a fan of Honey Bees.