Beekeeping Through the Eyes of a Biologist
Thanks to these sponsors, you can enjoy this website without annoying popup ads! You can show your appreciation by clicking on their banners above to go directly to their websites.
calculation of nosema spore counts using hemacytometer Randy Oliver, ScientificBeekeeping.com From Cantwell 1970, assuming that each sampled bee is diluted with 1 mL of water. Average spore count per bee is then: Average count per single small square x 4,000,000. Total count per large square (16 small squares) x 250,000. Or […]
Read MoreContents Review.. 1 Balancing moisture elimination and heat loss. 2 Broodrearing in the winter cluster. 3 So let’s do the arithmetic!. 5 Practical applications. 5 Optimal Cluster size. 5 Winter stores ― honey and beebread. 8 Hive placement. 8 Hive insulation. 9 Hive ventilation. 10 Literature cited. 11 The Nosema Problem Part 7c The Prevention […]
Read MoreContents The bees’ need for water. 1 Water and the winter cluster. 1 Water Balance. 2 Water homeostasis and buffering in the winter cluster. 3 Water in the gut. 3 Atmosphere and Humidity within the winter cluster. 3 Evaporation via respiration. 5 Defecation/Dysentery. 6 Literature cited. 8 The Nosema Problem: Part 7b The […]
Read MoreContents What the beekeeper can do. 1 seasonality. 2 detection and Sampling. 3 Queens And Nosema. 6 Deadout equipment. 7 citations and notes. 8 The Nosema Problem: Part 5 Monitoring and Disinfection First published in ABJ October 2019 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com Some beekeepers are concerned about the current unavailability of fumagillin. Although the Canadians […]
Read MoreContents Why would a colony exhibit signs of dysentery?. 3 honeydew.. 4 Microbial dysbiosis or parastism.. 5 The link between pollen and nosema. 7 How about those “winter bees”?. 8 Literature cited. 10 The Nosema Problem: Part 7a The Causes of Dysentery in Honey Bees Part 1 First published in ABJ December 2019 Randy […]
Read MoreContents First a return to queens. 1 Treatments for nosema. 2 fumagillin. 3 Alternative treatments. 3 What else is on the market?. 6 Nozevit®. 6 Hive alive®. 9 Acids in syrup. 9 Possibilities on the radar. 9 What if you don’t want to treat?. 9 citations and notes. 10 The Nosema Problem: Part 6 […]
Read MoreContents Effects of nosema upon an individual bee. 1 Effects of nosema upon the colony. 2 Colonies can fight back. 2 Nosema and almond pollination. 4 Nosema and the queen. 7 How concerned should you be about nosema?. 8 The take-home message. 10 Coming. 11 citations and notes. 12 . The Nosema Problem: Part […]
Read MoreContents Requisites for nosema to gain a foothold. 2 The importance of pollen to Nosema transmission and reproduction. 4 The connection between nosema and dysentery. 6 putting it all together. 7 Coming. 8 citations and notes. 8 The Nosema Problem: Part 3 Seasonality and Effects of Nosema Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ […]
Read MoreContents The invasion of Nosema Ceranae. 2 How did ceranae get into the U.S.?. 5 Signs of nosema infection. 5 A key finding. 8 Next. 9 citations and notes. 9 The Nosema Problem: Part 2 The Enigma of Nosema Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in ABJ July 2019 I’ve recently read Raquel Martin-Hernandez’s excellent […]
Read MoreContents What is dysentery?. 4 So why does everyone think that nosema causes dysentery?. 7 The sad part. 7 Nosema apparently does not cause dysentery. 7 next. 9 citations and notes. 9 The Nosema Problem: Part 1 It’s “Common Knowledge” that Nosema Causes Dysentery… But is it Actually True? First published in ABJ May […]
Read MoreIt’s “Common Knowledge” that Nosema Causes Dysentery… But is it actually true? Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com Yesterday I inspected a group of 40 hives returning from almond pollination. All were strong and healthy, other than two unusual deadouts, which no longer had any bees on the combs, and only a scattering of a few dead workers […]
Read MoreThe Seasonality of Nosema Ceranae Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in April 2015 Nosema apis has long been known to cause disease primarily during winter and spring. Many misinterpreted Dr. Mariano Higes’ finding that one could detect spores of N. ceranae throughout the year [1] as indicating that infection was no longer seasonal. […]
Read More“Fried Eggs” Identified! Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in Feb 2012 I mentioned in my previous article that I’ve been seeing an unidentified organism that looked like “fried eggs” in the guts of bees from my operation in the California foothills (Figure 1). I sent out requests to a number of researchers for […]
Read MoreThe Scientific Method Effect of the Invasion Why Would Nosema ceranae Not Cause Problems? Understanding Nosema Understanding the Honey Bee Superorganism Nosema and Energy Metabolism Nosema and Protein Metabolism References Sick Bees 17B: Nosema—the Smoldering Epidemic (Part 2) First published in ABJ April 2012 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com You may have noticed that I’m doing a […]
Read MoreSick Bees 17: Nosema The Smoldering Epidemic Part B First published in ABJ April 2012 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com The Scientific Method Effect of the Invasion Why Would Nosema ceranae Not Cause Problems? Understanding Nosema Understanding the Honey Bee Superorganism Energy and Protein Metabolism References You may have noticed that I’m doing a sort of […]
Read More