Beekeeping Through the Eyes of a Biologist
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Understanding Colony Buildup and Decline: Part 10 Summer Downsizing And Varroa Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in March 2016 At this point in time, the desperate intensity of spring buildup has long since passed, swarming season is over, and the colony has had its chance to use the main honey flow to put […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline: Part 9b The Regulation of Bee Longevity Randy Oliver Scientific Beekeeping First Published in ABJ in February 2016 In the first part of this article, I looked at the regulation of the lifespan of the long-lived “winter” (diutinus) bees. Now it’s time to turn to the question of why “summer […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline: Part 9a The Regulation Of Bee Longevity Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in January 2016 CONTENTS The Business Model Of The European Honey Bee The Phases Of Colony Life Cycle It’s All About Most Efficient Use Of Resources Reversing The Question The Regulation Of Aging The Honey Bee […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline: Part 8 The Main Honey Flow Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in ABJ Oct and November 2015 The moment has now arrived for our honey bees to earn their name. Unlike other insects in temperate climates, the honey bee maintains an elevated body temperature throughout the frigid winter. It does […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 7b Minimizing Swarming Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in Sep 2015 CONTENTS The Beekeeper’s Dilemma The Reproductive Urge It’s Not Just Crowding Cues And Thresholds Involved In The Swarming Impulse The Condition Of The Broodnest And Amount Of Open Comb Backfilling Availability Of Empty Drawn Comb […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 7a The Swarming Impulse Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in Aug 2015 CONTENTS The Swarming Impulse Terminology Reproductive Swarming And Emergency Swarming The Effect Of Swarming Upon The Colony Predicting Swarming Issuance Of The Swarm Acknowledgements References One of the main challenges of keeping bees for […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 6 Hiccups in Colony Linear Buildup Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in July 2015 CONTENTS Return To Playing Catch Up Real World Hiccups The Effect Of Cold Weather The Effect Of Rainy Weather Spring Starvation From Too Little To Too Much Brood Survivorship Adult Survivorship Take […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 5 Egglaying, Adult Survivorship, and Modeling Colony Growth Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in June 2015 CONTENTS Some Questions Begging For Answers Survivorship Of The Workers A Simplified Mathematical Model Question: Why Does The Population Stop Growing After 10 Weeks? Population Top Out Playing Catch Up […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 4 The Linear Growth Phase Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in May 2015 What got me going on this series is the question of at what rate can I expect my colonies to build up. I’ve now discussed the concepts of “recruitment” and “attrition,” the constraints […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 3 The “Spring Turnover” Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in April 2015 CONTENTS Late Winter Broodrearing The First Springtime Pollen Notes On The Population Demographics Chart The Spring Turnover The Limit Of The “Shell” The Beneficial Effect Of A Young Queen The Limiting Effect Of Nutrition […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 2 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in March 2015 CONTENTS Recruitment and Attrition Looking At The Numbers The Annual Cycle Late Winter Equilibrium Visualizing Colony Demographics Acknowledgements Citations and Footnotes My sons are in the slow process of learning how to take over more responsibilities in […]
Read MoreUnderstanding Colony Buildup and Decline – Part 1 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First Published in ABJ in February 2015 CONTENTS How Populations Grow Measured Population Growth of Colonies A Question on Methodology A Case of Unfettered Egglaying Acknowledgements Citations and Footnotes During my recent trial of the pollen subs, I was able to watch small colonies […]
Read MoreA Pesticide-Free Control Group 2011/2012 Beelogical Trials Discussion What Makes Dinks Dinks? The Midwinter Assessment (Size Matters) Another Trial The Winter Turnaround So What To Do With Dinks? Spread of Infection From Hive to Hive Coming References Winter Colony Losses Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in ABJ September 2013 For nearly a decade now […]
Read MoreThe Primer Pheromones, Part 4—Reproduction and Survival Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in American Bee Journal July 2010 Queen Pheromone(s) We humans hear the term “queen” and immediately project all the royal attributes of leadership and omnipotence upon the mother of the colony. But is this really the case? Does the queen bee really “rule” […]
Read MoreThe Primer Pheromones and Managing the Labor Pool Part 3 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com First published in American Bee Journal June 2010 I left you last month in the middle of explaining the current model for colony workforce allocation, and the influence of various primer pheromones. Please allow me to pick up where I left off. […]
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