When you hear the hum of a bee visiting a flower, you hear the movement of air created by the flapping of its wings. But it turns out that bees buzz in more ways than one. Giles Harrison: I first saw this when a bee landed on the electrode I was using and saw a … Read more

When we think of dying bees, we often think of pesticides and the resulting lack of food (which itself is linked to human environmental destruction). However, another important factor is parasites (such as varroa mites). When a 16-year-old from Connecticut, Raina Singhvi Jain, learned about these parasites and the declining bee population, she made it … Read more

Patients with an aggressive form of breast cancer may soon find relief from an unlikely source: bee venom. A recent study in Australia showed that this toxin kills cells in triple negative breast cancer in less than 60 minutes. This type of cancer is one of the most difficult to treat, and researchers believe this … Read more

Bee pollination is responsible for more than $15 billion in crops worldwide each year, with 1 in 3 bites of food directly or indirectly linked to bee pollination. A third of our food depends on the pollination of fruits, nuts and vegetables by bees and other insects. The massive loss of bee colonies in recent … Read more

Researchers at Alexander Fleming’s BSRC in Greece have optimized a method to detect DNA traces in honey, revealing the species with which honey bees interact. This collaborative work, led by researcher Dr. Solen Patalano, enabled the monitoring of bee diet variation throughout the year, revealing the microbiota of bees in a non-invasive way, as well … Read more

In a word, no. While some bees will undoubtedly die, others will not. Not all bee species are even capable of stinging. “There are an estimated 20,000 species of bees worldwide, and not all of them sting,” Alison Ray, a PhD student in molecular and integrative cellular biology at Penn State, told Live Science in … Read more

Recently I was on the official website for the city of Ypsilanti and noticed a sign that said they are a bee city. Naturally, this piqued my interest as I had never heard of Bee City before. So, what exactly is the City of Bees and what does it mean for the city of Ypsilanti? … Read more

The mysterious death of a large number of bees in the early part of this century was a sign for human civilization. Some beekeepers witnessed the sudden and mysterious death of half of their bees due to a phenomenon called “colony collapse disorder” which was first identified in 2006. Since much of human agriculture depends … Read more

In addition to his full-time job, Dean Strickland cares for approximately 100 bee colonies daily. She first started beekeeping 15 years ago after researching the health benefits honey could have for her children. “I thought to myself, ‘I want to be a beekeeper — it doesn’t sound too complicated,’” Strickland said. “That’s a joke in … Read more

Over the past 50 years, bee populations have declined due to disease, poor nutrition, pesticide exposure, and more. Considering that honey bees are an important factor in our ecosystem, it is very important to protect and preserve their habitat. Obviously, honeybees do not always build their hives in a location that is beneficial to both … Read more