Beekeeping News
A curated selection of worldwide feeds related around the topic of beekeeping and honeybees.
The 'June gap' and brood breaks; does the queen stop laying, or are the larvae cannibalised? Probably both, and more. Plus some brief comments on hayfever and honey, and determining when OSR/canola honey is ready for extraction (it's earlier than you might think).
Ende Juni/Anfang Juli ist es an der Zeit, in sämtlichen Beuten die Varroabelastung zu ermitteln. Bei einem natürlichen Milbenfall von über 10 Milben pro Tag ist rasches Handeln nötig, um die Bienen nicht zu unnötig zu gefährden. In den betroffenen Völkern ist umgehend die Sommerbehandlung (mit oder …
Apiculture New Zealand members voted, near-unanimously, to adopt a new constitution giving control to commercial beekeepers and sidelining hobby apiarists and the honey marketing sector...
There are differences in the chemical and physical properties of wax in queen cells and worker comb. This is attributed to a specific group of young worker bees; the queen cell builders. What lessons are there for beekeeping from the identification of these bees and differences in the wax?
Allfällige Trachtlücken nach der 1. Honigernte sind für die Bienen eine Herausforderung. Überprüfen Sie sicherheitshalber die Vorräte in Ihren Völkern und richten dabei ein besonderes Augenmerk auf die Jungvölker. Ein Volk benötigt jederzeit mindestens 5 kg Futter. Ist dies jetzt nicht vorhanden, rä…
Nest architecture in social insects is often viewed as a static structural component providing shelter or storage. However, the extent to which these constructed environments actively shape biological traits remains poorly understood. Although the genetic and nutritional drivers of honey bee caste d…
By: Dr. Gard Otis Professor Emeritus, University of Guelph, Canada and Research Associate,Institute of Bee Health, University of Bern, Switzerland gotis@uoguelph.ca The Yellow-legged Hornet (YLH), frequently referred to as the “Asian hornet” in Europe, is a very serious invasive pest. The first repo…
The weather has a profound influence on bees and beekeeping; some thoughts on coping with extreme heat, the ideal conditions for queen mating, and predicting the onset of swarming.
Celvia CC Announces Accrediation of Innovative MDA Test for Honey Authenticity Verification Celvia CC is pleased to announce that its MDA (Honey Metagenomic DNA Analysis) test has received ISO 17025 accreditation from the Estonian Accreditation Centre (EAK), marking a significant milestone in honey …
[Beltsville Bee Lab to be relocated] Washington, D.C., April 23, 2026, USDA Office of Communications — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Research, Education, and Economics (REE) Mission Area today announced a reorganization and leadership restructuring to better align its work with USDA prioritie…
If you have ever been hangry (a portmanteau for hungry and angry), then you know what it is like to be irritable, bad-tempered, or easily annoyed. While being hangry may seem like an excuse for unpleasant behavior, research shows that hunger can cause shifts in our hormones, brain processes, and ner…
The University of Florida and Enterprise State Community College recently made history by hosting the largest coordinated series of advanced instrumental insemination (II) workshops ever held in the United States. Led by Krispn Given, a global authority in honey bee breeding from Purdue University, …
What’s in a name? By: James E. Tew Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! What follows…What follows are some of my thoughts and interactions I have had through many past years. I struggle to put my accumulated th…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! And the Native Bees We Love By: Nam Chi Anoche My name is Nam Chi Anoche, and I’m on the master beekeeper track at the University of Florida. I reside in Honolulu, Hawai’i, [̷…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! The Art of the Bees Cut-Out By: Joby Carpenter – Arbuckle Mountain Honey, Southern Oklahoma Every beekeeper loves to catch a swarm hanging from a tree branch. But sometimes …
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! By: Theresa J. Martin In this series, we are focusing on practical ways to make solo beekeeping safer, more efficient, and more enjoyable. In past articles, we covered topics such…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! By: David Burns Have you ever inspected your hive and had to separate two brood boxes only to find a large amount of gross-looking torn open brood in between the top and bottom [&…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! Big Aspirations In A Small Industry By: Ross Conrad Who owns the largest commercial beekeeping operation in the USA? For decades it’s been the Adee family, owner of Adee Honey Far…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! Inspecting Your Hives By: Richard Wahl Growing up as a kid on the same farm property I now own, I can still picture the half-dozen beehives that once sat quietly down a lane [R…
Click Here if you watched/listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! Interview with “Sherlock” Shurmer, a Chemical Detective By: Dr. Tracy Farone Recently I had the privilege of sitting down and learning more about an unsung hero in public …
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! By: Stephen Bishop Richard seemed like a nice enough guy, not real talkative, just your typical poultry farmer slaving away to pay off his new poultry houses, but he held a deep d…
Click Here if you listened. We’d love to know what you think. There is even a spot for feedback! Read along below! For the Love of Queen Excluders By: Becky Masterman & Dan Whitney Either loved or hated by beekeepers, the queen excluder might just be the industry’s most controversial piece…
On June 5 Apiculture New Zealand (ApiNZ) members will be asked to make a crucial decision regarding the industry organisation’s future for the third time in less than 15 months. The choice? Dissolve the group with roots stretching back more than a century, or adopt an entirely new constitution which…
While seen as the likely outcome of Apiculture New Zealand’s (ApiNZ) June 5 AGM, transition to, the temporarily named, Honey and Bees NZ is seen by some of the longest serving members of the group as an outcome that will exclude too many otherwise interested parties.
Comvita raised NZD40.5m through the sale of 59.3m new shares in a rights issue and placement that concluded 7 May. The share sale, which increased shares in issue 84.0% to 129.8m, was Comvita’s largest ever. Banks will be paid all sale proceeds as a condition for agreeing new loans.
For over six months, the fight against yellow-legged hornets on Auckland’s North Shore has been one of the most significant biosecurity responses New Zealand beekeepers have ever faced. Now, with no hornets or nests found since early April, many are asking the same question – have we beaten them, or…
Nelson beekeeper Nigel Costley was in the thick of it when Varroa destructor was first identified in the South Island. He describes an exhilarating six months on the front line – a time of steep learning, excitement, disappointment and controversy. But most of all, a camaraderie sometimes scarce in …
For many New Zealanders, the Gene Technology Bill may sound like a distant scientific or political debate. But for beekeepers, pollinators, and those working closely with the land, the proposed changes raise important long-term questions about the future of our ecosystems, farming systems, and expor…
Dnature’s diagnostic and research’s new advertisements almost says it all – “Tired of the ‘yeah-nah-yeah’ AFB results in your honey? Get a real answer with our new AFB ULTRA test before you blend your honey”. We would like to know more about how it works though, so we ask some probing questions to d…
Most beekeepers are well aware of the ‘waggle’ dance, but did you know honey bees also perform ‘round’ dances. Mark Goodwin has studied the behaviour and determined each of the dances has its own occasion, and that understanding the resulting foraging behaviour can help prevent robbing.