The Beekeeper’s Companion Since 1861
American Bee Journal Volume 166 No. 2 February 2026 Cover Callouts: The Tremble Dance: A Hidden Language - 153, honey bees search for sodium - 193, iNaturlaist on the Apiary -147

Nutrition Matters: Stress From Migratory Beekeeping May Be Eased by Access to Food

Nutrition Matters- Photo credit NC State University
Posted November 1, 2016

Nutrition Matters: Stress From Migratory Beekeeping May Be Eased by Access to Food

In the first large-scale and comprehensive study on the impacts of transporting honey bees to pollinate various crops, research from North Carolina State University shows that travel can adversely affect bee health and lifespan. Some of these negative impacts may be reduced by moving bee colonies into patches with readily available food or by providing …

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Seek and You Shall Find — Bees Remain Excellent Searchers Even When Ill

Posted November 1, 2016

Seek and You Shall Find — Bees Remain Excellent Searchers Even When Ill

Honey bees are hardwired to efficiently search the landscape enabling them to continue working for the greater good of their hives even when they are sick, according to new research co-authored by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Radar technology has been used to show for the first time that bees remain nimble and able …

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The Classroom – November 2016

Posted November 1, 2016

The Classroom – November 2016

COMMENT:  Kale Honey Jerry, Attached are 2 pictures of my Kale field.  This was somewhat of a mistake two years ago as I allowed some Kale to go to seed. The bloom time on this lasts about 3 weeks and peaks for about 10 days (pending weather). Frost seeding in mid to late October seems …

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Two yellow clovers: Hop clover and large hop clover. (Fabaceae)

Trifolium campestre (hop clover). The plant was grown in a greenhouse
Posted November 1, 2016

Two yellow clovers: Hop clover and large hop clover. (Fabaceae)

Scientific name: Trifolium campestre (Hop clover, field clover) and Trifolium aureum (Large hop clover, golden clover). In the beekeeping literature, these two species are frequently handled together. This is the way I handle them here. Synonyms: Hop clover: Trifolium campestre was once called Trifolium procumbens. Large hop clover: Trifolium aureum was once called Trifolium agrarium. …

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November 2016 – HBB

bees engorged full of honey
Posted November 1, 2016

November 2016 – HBB

When walking up to an apiary, a good beekeeping skill is to let your vision sweep across the hives seeing how the bees flow through the air. When bees are making honey, the bee traffic should stream from the entrances up into the sky or over into nearby fields. The apiary flight pattern is similar …

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Advantage of Large Body Size

Posted November 1, 2016

Advantage of Large Body Size

Last month I talked about the evolution of body size which, when it comes to the superorganism, translates to the number of cells (workers) making up the body (colony). When it comes to the honey bee superorganism, it’s reasonable to say that big is good. This is true whether you’re talking about a natural colony …

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Comb Honey Corner November 2016

Split top bar frame
Posted November 1, 2016

Comb Honey Corner November 2016

As of this writing one of my colonies collapsed with two-half filled supers of comb honey on board. The brood chamber is producing wax moths. The supers have small hive beetles in them. My solution will be to separate the boxes and let nature take its course. The brood frames will have the wired wax …

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November 2016

Posted November 1, 2016

November 2016

The Varroa Problem—Part I Randy Oliver………………………………………………………………………………….1233 Bomb vs Bond—Non-chemical Varroa Treatment Options—Part II M.E.A. McNeil………………………………………………………………………………..1239 Honey Bee Colony Losses: What’s Happening in South America? Fabrice Requier, Nancy Garcia, Georg Andersson, Facundo Oddi, Lucas A. Garibaldi…… ……………………………………………………………………………………………1247 Making and Maintaining Connections: Networking: Personal, Social, Corporate Lawrence John Connor………………………………………………………………………125 The Ethics of Honey Selling Howard Scott…………………………………………………………………………………1259 Charlie …

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Honey Bee Colony Losses: What’s Happening in South America?

honeybees on frame
Posted November 1, 2016

Honey Bee Colony Losses: What’s Happening in South America?

Currently, a third to a half of managed honey bee colonies is lost every winter in Europe (Potts et al. 2010a) and North America (Seitz et al., 2016). This decline in managed honey bees threatens honey production and crop pollination service in many countries (Potts et al. 2016), leading to concerns for negative social, economic …

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November ABJ Cover

November American Bee Journal Cover Photo
Posted November 1, 2016

November ABJ Cover

Kris Hurlbert sent us this beautiful apiary photo that he has entitled “Hives under a Morning Fog”.  Kris said, “I thought I would send you a photo I took the other morning of our hives under a morning fog just as the sun was breaking. The more I look at it, the more it captivates …

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