Caribbean Bee College 2013

Hey everyone,

Just a quick announcement - the University of Florida in collaboration with East Caribbean Research and Extension Center at St. George's University will be hosting it's 1st Annual Caribbean Bee College (4-5 January 2013).

This event, originally done by UF Bee College has been a successful and popular honey bee extension event in Florida and has provided training and instruction for new beekeepers, and helped refine techniques/skills by seasoned bee keepers.

This two-day event will serve as a learning experience for beekeepers, farmers and those in related bee-related industries. It will consist of morning lectures and afternoon workshops on a variety of topics from initial bee keeping to producing queen honey bees. There will also be a group discussion on the state of honey bee research, extension, and instruction efforts in the Caribbean.

Registration, lodging and other CBC details is available on www.ufhoneybee.com

They beez around us.

As the project has taken off, I have encountered many a mixed impression with the bees from people locally. For one, as a student on the project, this is the closest interaction I've ever had with honey bees. However, I can't quite say I've been afraid.

Funnily enough though, I have encountered people working on farms that are terrified of bees as well as a few other people that have a phobia of them.

What have I learned though? Bees don't really care about people that much unless provoked. I've had to walk between hives swarming with bees and not a bee sting yet. The project has also made me more cognizant as to how many pollinating insects are around us all the time even though we're unaware and how great a role they play in getting plants on farms to fruit so that we can get them in the markets and for export. Below are a few obscure photos taken randomly around the island --- be it the T.A.M.C.C. campus or someone's backyard.

Next time you step outside, actually stop and smell the flowers, peer a little closer and you may just be surprised at the little critters flying around helping make those gorgeous blossoms possible.

To the lab we go...

So we've started doing practice to find nosema spores in bees. 

The process consists of removing the abdomens of 16 bees from each sample.

Placing them in a mortar and crushing them to a paste. Then adding 30 ml distilled water.

Afterwards, using a fine capillary tube we place it on a slide with a counting grid and proceed to count under the microscope.

These are a few of the bee larvae within the combs. You can tell the more mature larvae as their eyes are pink and they are darker in colour.

Here is Dwayne, the head of the project, demonstrating/observing the larvae under a dissecting microscope for varroa mites.

We've also engaged in the process of melting the wax to a liquid consistency so that we could fill them in petri dishes. The dried petri dishes would consequently be used in future experiments that require pinning the bees in place.

Removal of impurities from the melted wax

Dried wax that has a lovely smell reminiscent of honey.

Bubbling...

The ECBREC Project

St. George's University, in collaboration with University of Florida and local governments, is launching a new project called ECBREC.

ECBREC stands for 'East Caribbean Bee Research & Extension Center." The project aims to improve the health and productivity of bees in Grenada and the Caribbean region by focusing research on livestock sustainability, native bees, honey bee husbandry, ecology, behaviour, and conservation.

The results would be shared with public and private sector groups. Also, the project aims to involve local students in the project endeavours.