Indiana Department of Natural Resources sent this bulletin at 02/14/2024 07:20 AM EST
Weekly Review for February 14, 2024
This informal report by the Division of Entomology & Plant Pathology is a commentary on insects, diseases, and curiosities division staff encounter on a week-to-week basis. Comments and questions about this report are welcome and can be sent to your respective Inspector.
I wanted to throw out a couple of things that may interest beekeepers.
First, the Honeybee Health Coalition has come out with a great guide on honeybee nutrition. It’s got a lot of useful info and an interesting summary of research as it relates to current supplements. It’s also got some real-world feedback from multiple migratory operations from around the country and what their nutritional supplement routines are. I would encourage everyone to check it out.
I also wanted to give everyone a heads up on an upcoming seminar on bee nutrition. It’s being put on by Project Apis m. with three of the leading nutrition researchers in the United States. It’s going to run from 11 a.m. to 1:30 pm ET on March 6.
Speaking of Project Apis m., I would encourage everyone to watch the group’s short 15 minute video which, in my opinion, lays out a fundamental understanding of improving bee nutrition at a landscape scale.
Finally, I have seen several folks report that they have seen their bees bringing in pollen and there was some debate if it is in fact pollen. I have also seen reports of skunk cabbage being up which is one of the first forages bees use. Skunk cabbage can emerge even when there is snow on the ground. I have also received reports of dandelion emerging in southern portions of the state.
