Honeybee colonies have decreased from 5 million in the 1940s to 2.5 million today. Recent findings from the Bee Informed Partnership, USDA-support consortium of universities and research laboratories, indicate that the long-term decline of U.S. honey-bee colonies actually accelerated last year, this in spite of numerous efforts to slow the worrying pace of die-offs. The use of neonicotinoids have been linked to causing bee kills through pesticide drift recently. This research will estimate baseline tolerance between strains of honeybees to several neonicotinoids by conducting diet incorporated bioassays. Results of running the diet-incorporated bioassays will be collected and reported periodically through periodical summaries published in beekeeping newsletters, magazines, and the final results will be reported as peer-reviewed publications.
Beekeepers in Missouri will be given the information as to which strain is more tolerant to neonicotinoids to benefit their bee colonies. In addition, we are going to quantify residual insecticides in hive components in 60 locations in Missouri (June – Sept 2016, 2017) to determine the effect of re-using wax foundation on bee health. Throughout the project, we will present our results at local Beekeeping associations.
All donations are tax deductible and are used to directly benefit honeybee health for Missouri. The money is used for publishing brochures, postage, travel to Extension and beekeeper meetings, and bee research to development best management practices for keeping bees in Missouri. If you would like to be acknowledged on the Missouri Pollinator Conservancy Program website for donating, please list your name when contributing. The donation levels are as follows:
• Bronze: $25 – $99
• Silver : $100 – $199
• Gold : $200 – $399
• Platinum: $400 and above
Thanks again for your support!