As trees and flowers blossom in spring, bees emerge from their winter nests and burrows. For many species it’s time to mate, and some will start new solitary nests or colonies. Bees and other pollinators are essential to human society. They provide about one-third of the food we eat, a service with a global value […]
Tag: bee
Have Bats Moved into Your Shed? Signs to Look Out For
While many people wouldn’t choose to have bats roosting in their property, they can make their home in your house more often than you might realise. Sheds are often a popular setting for bats, along with lofts. If you think that you might have bats present in your shed, then it’s worth learning more about […]
Colorful New Species of Gecko Discovered in India
Eublepharis is a small genus in the lizard family Eublepharidae, which contains 44 species in six genera distributed in parts of North and Central America, West and East Africa, Middle East, South Asia and the Malayan Archipelago. First described in 1827, the genus is currently represented by seven species of which five are known from […]
Victory! European Union Bans Neonic Pesticides
Environmentalists, health care professionals and food lovers everywhere will be celebrating the European Union’s (EU) decision for an almost complete ban of neonicotinoid (called neonics) pesticides across member states in Europe. The EU had previously restricted use of three neonics from use in 2013, but today’s new ban is more extensive, now completely banning any […]
De-extinction Versus Wildlife Conservation
How possible is de-extinction anyway? Due to how degraded and incomplete most samples of DNA are it would seem to a take a long time to amass enough DNA to complete a full genetic sequence for an animal genome (the genetic data found in gamete cells that are used in reproduction). However, after many samples […]
POLL: Should neonicotinoids be banned to save bees?
Pesticides used on oilseed rape crops, whose bright yellow flowers have become an increasingly common sight across the British countryside, are harming native populations of wild bees, scientists have conclusively proved. Species that feed most on the flowers of the now-profitable cash crop used for vegetable oils and animal fodder are down by as much […]
POLL: Should neonicotinoid pesticides be banned to save our bees?
More than a quarter of American honeybee colonies were wiped out over the winter, with deadly infestations of mites and harmful land management practices heaping mounting pressure upon the crucial pollinators and the businesses that keep them. Preliminary figures commissioned by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) show that 28% of bee colonies in the […]
Bees and pesticides ‘missing link’ found
Scientists say they have found the “missing link” in the debate over the risk of pesticides to bees. French researchers say neonicotinoid pesticides harm individual honeybees, but whole colonies are able to recover in the wild. This accounts for discrepancies between lab and field studies, they report in Royal Society journal Proceedings B. A Europe-wide […]