honeybees Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Manitoba Co-operator

'Think of a down jacket: it’s the air between the feathers that helps keep the wearer warm. Honeybee clusters are similar to the action of compressing a down jacket, whereby the thermal conductivity eventually increases to that of a dense solid of feathers...'

Comment: Bee clustering knowledge based on faulty guidance

Honeybees cluster together when it’s cold but we’ve been completely wrong about why

By Derek Mitchell December 12, 2023

Honeybees in human-made hives may have suffered the cold unnecessarily for over a century because commercial hive designs are based on erroneous science. For 119 years, a belief that the way honeybees cluster together provides a kind of evolutionary insulation has been fundamental for beekeeping practice, hive design and honeybee study. In the modern day,

“The entire time I’ve been beekeeping, I’ve never thought twice about sugar availability, other than just the price going up a little bit because of supply and demand.” – Ian Steppler, Manitoba Beekeepers Association.

News

‘We’ve always taken for granted that the sugar’s always been there’

Sugar shortage highlights beekeeper feed vulnerability

By Alexis Stockford December 7, 2023

Beekeeping groups on the Prairies say it’s a good thing Western Canada’s sugar shortage didn’t happen a few months ago. The bees are now tucked away for the winter, but August and September are prime feeding seasons when beekeepers condition their colonies for winter and natural nectar sources are drying up. “We’ve always taken for granted that the

Livestock

Beekeepers call to reopen cross-border package bee trade

Ten years after the last risk assessment, some say it’s time to re-evaluate

By GFM Network News May 2, 2023

Canadian beekeepers are calling for the federal government to reopen the border to the importation of U.S. package honeybees. Witnesses at a meeting of the House of Commons standing committee on agriculture and agri-food last Wednesday presented recommendations for what the government could do to resolve issues of honeybee health decline and bee mortality. The

A varroa mite feeds on a honeybee during its pupa stage.

Livestock

New control for varroa mites on the horizon

University of Manitoba researchers look to CO2 to help beat back the parasite

By Don Norman March 21, 2023

Research at the University of Manitoba involves a promising and inexpensive control for varroa mites in honeybee colonies. Professor Rob Currie, head of the school’s department of entomology, is exploring the use of carbon dioxide to help mitigate mite infestations. The elevator pitch behind the treatment is that varroa mites have a higher sensitivity to

Asian giant hornets have noticeably large orange heads and black eyes; worker hornets are about 3.5 cm in length; queens can be up to four to five cm in length, with a wingspan of four to seven cm. (B.C. Ministry of Agriculture)

Livestock, Other, Weather

Two more ‘murder hornets’ turn up on B.C. mainland

One nest found last month in neighbouring U.S. town

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News November 11, 2020

Beekeepers in British Columbia’s Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland are asked to keep an eye out for so-called “murder hornets” after two were found in the region within a week. A single Asian giant hornet was found Saturday at Aldergrove, near the intersection of Fraser Highway and Highway 13 — about five km from where

Tim Wendell has raised bees since he was a teen, and has been rearing queen bees for about 30 years.

Farmit Manitoba, Other

Queens, drones and bees that fly backwards

Three beekeeping experts explain honeybee breeding in Manitoba

By Geralyn Wichers September 23, 2020

To most of us, a bee is probably just a bee. Sure, there’s honeybees, bumblebees, and whatever that bee is that lives in huts on farmers’ fields (leafcutters, of course). But otherwise, a bee’s a bee, right? No, as it turns out. Like cattle ranchers and horse breeders, beekeepers pay a lot of attention to

Livestock, Other, Weather

More ‘murder hornets’ found in B.C., Washington

Findings suggest some were able to overwinter

By GFM Network News, Gfm Staff, Reuters May 30, 2020

Reuters/Staff — Officials in British Columbia and Washington state have confirmed new sightings of the Asian giant hornet, dubbed the “murder hornet,” indicating the invasive, predatory insect survived the winter in the Vancouver area and U.S. Pacific Northwest. The stinging hornet, whose queens can grow as large as 2-1/2 inches in length, could potentially pose

News

Beekeepers see shorter season

By Geralyn Wichers September 3, 2019

Beekeepers have seen their honey supply dry up sooner than usual this year. Ian Steppler, vice-chair of the Manitoba Beekeepers Association, said almost every honey producer he’s spoken to has had a shorter crop than usual this year — especially in the Interlake. Steppler, who farms near Miami, said he usually has honey to late

Crops

Field studies fuel dispute over whether neonics harm bees

By GFM Network News, Kate Kelland June 30, 2017

London | Reuters — Two major studies into how bees are affected by a group of pesticides banned in Europe gave mixed results on Thursday, fuelling a row over whether the neonicotinoid pesticides are safe. The studies, one conducted across three European countries and another in Canada, found some negative effects after exposure to neonicotinoids

Honeybee numbers and production appear to be rebounding.

Crops, News

Honeybee colonies and production are up

Mitigation measures implemented in 2014 appear to be working

By Alex Binkley October 26, 2016

Steps taken to protect honeybees from crop protection products appear to be working. The number of honeybee colonies and their level of production has been rising since 2013, according to testimony to the Senate agriculture committee. Andrea Johnson, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) director general of sector development told the committee the most recently available

Daily Network News

U.S. livestock: CME cattle tick lower in thin pre-holiday trade

U.S. grains: Wheat extends gains on short covering, war risk

Prairie forecast: Plenty more chances for snow over Holidays

Tag Archives honeybees