New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) attempted to create a suitable habitat for the American woodcock – a species of concern – yet ended up destroying the habitats of two other species. 21 acres of forest were cut down in February and March at the Glassboro Wildlife Management Area in Clayton, Gloucester County. The department called the […]
Tag: honeybees
9 Good Bugs for Your Garden and How to Attract Them
Not all creepy-crawlers are welcome in the garden, but some insects are very beneficial to the success of your flowers, herbs and veggies. According to Almanac, beneficial bugs fall into three categories: pollinators, which help pollinate plants; predators, which feed on garden pests; and parasitizers, like parasitic wasps and other insects that lay eggs inside […]
Bees can learn, remember, think and make decisions—here’s a look at how they navigate the world
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 […]
Ethiopia used chemicals to kill locusts. Billions of honeybees disappeared
Between 2019 and 2021, swarms of desert locusts̨ swept across the Horn of Africa and East Africa. In response, the worst-affected countries, Kenya and Ethiopia, sprayed millions of hectares of cropland and pastures with chemical pesticides. A new study now finds the chemical spraying coincided with a steep decline in honey production in Ethiopia. Co-author […]
Study: Caged Honeybees are Living Half as Long as Observed 50 Years Ago
In a new study published today in the journal Scientific Reports, a duo of researchers at the University of Maryland found that the median lifespan of caged worker honeybees has been declining in the United States since the 1970s, from an average of 34.3 days to 17.7 days. Colony turnover is an accepted factor in […]
Bumblebees Increasingly Stressed by Climate Change Over Past 100 Years, Study Finds
Bumblebees are larger than honeybees and, while they collect and store nectar from flowers to consume themselves, they do not convert nectar into honey like honeybees. Bumblebees are essential pollinators for many wildflowers and agricultural crops like sunflowers, cranberries, blueberries and tomatoes. Two contemporaneous papers examining bumblebee populations in the UK were recently published by […]
5 Reasons Wildlife is Good for Your Garden
Some gardens are entirely devoted to attracting wildlife. They tend to be filled with flowering plants, different types of berries and seeds, and native fruit-bearing trees. They often have cool features like small ponds, rock borders, and stumperies, all of which make great habitats for all sorts of animals. When we think about it, these […]
The weedkiller glyphosate destroys wild bees’ capability to reproduce the next generation
The weedkiller glyphosate, according to recent research, has affected wild bumblebees’ ability to keep their hives at the right temperature. Glyphosate is the most widely used insecticide on the planet, and it’s just meant to kill plants. Bumblebees, which are vital pollinators, were left out of regulatory risk assessments, which focus solely on whether a […]