Bee Information – Reading and Resources
The following bee information and resources are organized by subject (listed below). Within each subject, information is organized by type of resource.
| Categories | Types of Resources |
| Bees — General | Reference Materials |
| Honeybees | Books: Current Concerns and Events |
| Other Bees and Pollinators | Books: Classic Works |
| Beekeeping– General | Research Articles |
| Threats to Bees | Newspaper Articles |
| Honey and Hive Products | Films |
| Gardening, Farming and Pollination | Blogs |
| Allergies to Bees and Bee Products | Research Groups |
| Bees and Honey in China | Action Groups |
| Area-Specific Newsletters and Associations | Information Web Sites |
| Reference MaterialsMichener, C. D. Bees of the World. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000.Research Groups
Cyberbee.net has compiled a list of academics doing research on bees around the world. Check out this growing list. Action Groups Plan Bee: UK-based community co-operative with a petition to ‘save the bees’. |
| Honeybees bee information | Return to the top |
| Reference MaterialsHarman, Ann and Garceau, Sharon. The ABC & XYZ Of Bee Culture: An Encyclopedia Pertaining To The Scientific And Practical Culture Of Honey Bees. Medina, OH: A.I. Root Company, 2007.Books: Classic Works
The ABC and XYZ of Bee Culture. Medina, OH: A.I. Root Company, 1877. Films The Secret Life of Bees. Dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood. Based on book by Sue Monk Kidd. Perf. Dakota Fanning and Queen Latifah. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2008. Research Groups The Bee Research Unit in Jordan’s National Center for Agricultural Research and Extension. The Honey Bee Research Centre at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. I’ve heard them speak. The chief beekeeper is highly knowledgeable and a pleasure to talk to, but the researchers seem to be in denial about Colony Collapse Disorder. |
| Other Bees and Pollinators | Return to the top |
| Reference MaterialsMader, Eric, Vaughan, Mace, Shepherd, Matthew, Hoffman Black, Scott. Alternative Pollinators: Native Bees. National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (2010).Velthuis, HHW. “The Historical Background of the Domestication of the Bumble-Bee, Bombus Terrestris, and its Introduction in Agriculture.” In Pollinating Bees – The Conservation LinkBetween Agriculture and Nature Eds. P. Kevan and Fonseca VL Imperatriz. Brasília: Ministry of Environment, 2002. 177-184.
Research Articles bee information Steven Carruthers. “Bumblebees for Pollination of Greenhouse Tomato Crops in Australia“. Practical Hydroponics & Greenhouses, 88 (2006).McNeil, R., Pidduck, W. “The Effectiveness of the Western Bumblebee in Pollinating Hass Avocado Trees.” Proceedings V World Avocado Congress (Actas V Congreso Mundial del Aguacate) (2003): 253. Research Groups bee information University of Georgia doctoral student, Athena Anderson, is conducting a survey on bumblebee nesting in North America. University of Delaware: lead researcher, Dr. Deborah Delaney The “Big Bee” Project at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology in the UK The National Bumblebee Nest Survey by Rothamsted Research in the UK |
| Beekeeping– General bee information | Return to the top |
| Reference MaterialsAkratanakul, Pongthep. “Beekeeping in Asia.” FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin68/4, 1990.Crane, Eva. The World History of Beekeeping and Honey Hunting. London: Gerald Duckworth and Company, 1999.
Books: Current Events and Issues Bonney, Richard E. Beekeeping: A Practical Guide. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing, LLC, 1993. De Bruyn, Clive. Practical Beekeeping. Wiltshire, UK: The Crowood Press Ltd, 1997. Thompkins, E. and Griffith, R. Practical Beekeeping. Charlotte, VT: Garden Way Publishing, 1977. Books: Classic Works Nutt, Thomas. Humanity to Honey-bees: or, Practical Directions for the Management of Honey Bees. Wisbech: H. & J. Leach, 1832. Research Groups Project Apis m.: A collaborative endeavour established by beekeepers and orchardists and based in Chico, CA. Research is aimed at improving and maintaining economic viability for beekeepers. |
| Threats to Bees bee information | Return to the top |
| Books: Current Events and IssuesBenjamin, Allison and McCallum, Brian. A World Without Bees. London: Cornerstone, 2010.Jacobsen, Rowan. Fruitless Fall: The Collapse of the Honey Bee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis. New York: Bloomsbury, 2008.
Packer, Laurence. Keeping the Bees: Why All Bees Are at Risk and What We Can Do to Save Them. Toronto: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd., 2010. Schacker, Michael. A Spring without Bees: How Colony Collapse Disorder Has Endangered Our Food Supply. Guilford, Conn: Globe Pequot Press, 2008. Shapiro, Zachary. We’re All in the Same Boat. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2009. Research Articles Felton, J.C., Oomen, P.A., Stevenson, J.H. “Toxicity and hazard of pesticides to honeybees: Harmonization of test methods.” Bee World 67:3 (1986): 114. Khoury, D.S., Myerscough, M.R., Barron, A.B. “A Quantitative Model of Honey Bee Colony Population Dynamics.” PLoS ONE 6:4 (2011): e18491. Full text available here. Mullin, Christopher A., Frazier, Maryann, Frazier, James L., Ashcraft, Sara, Simonds, Roger, vanEngelsdorp, Dennis, Pettis, Jeffery S. “High Levels of Miticides and Agrochemicals in North American Apiaries: Implications for Honey Bee Health” PLoS ONE 5:3 (2010): e9754. Full text article here. Pettis, Jeffery S., Delaplane, Keith S. “Coordinated responses to honey bee decline in the USA.” Apidologie 41:3 (2010): 256. This article is available for free at www.apidologie.org Underwood, R.M., vanEngelsdorp, D. “Colony Collapse Disorder: Have We Seen This Before?” Bee Culture 135:7 (2007):13. Full text available here. vanEngelsdorp, D., Evans, J.D., Saegerman, C., Mullin, C., Haubruge, E., Nguyen, B.K., Frazier, M. Frazier, J., Cox-Foster, D., Chen, Y.P., Underwood, R., Tarpy, D.R., Pettis, J.S. “Colony Collapse Disorder: A descriptive study.” PLoS ONE 4:8 (2009): e6481. Full text available here. vanEngelsdorp, D., Hayes, J., Pettis, J. “Preliminary Results: A Survey of Honey Bee Colonies Losses in the U.S. Between September 2008 and April 2009.” May, 2009. Available here. Watanabe, M.E. “Colony Collapse Disorder: Many Suspects, No Smoking Gun.” BioOne 58:5 (2008):384. Full text available here. Newspaper Articles “Honeybee Colonies Are Collapsing, But Not All Hope Is Lost.” The Globe and Mail 10 Mar 2011. Zimmer, Lori. “It’s Official – Cell Phones are Killing Bees.” Inhabitat 21 May 2011. (This nonsense is still being perpetuated – this article is here for reference only.) Films To Bee or Not To Bee. Dir. Mark Johnston. Galafilm Productions, 2010. Available at CBC. Vanishing of the Bees. Dirs. George Langworthy and Maryam Henein. Hive Mentality Films, 2009. Blogs A World Without Bees: From the authors of “A World Without Bees” (2010), a blog devoted to Colony Collapse Disorder. |
| Honey and Hive Products | Return to the top |
bee information
| Reference MaterialsKirk, William. A Colour Guide to Pollen Loads of the Honey Bee. 2nd Edition. Cardiff: International Bee Research Association, 2006.Books: Current Events and Issues
Bishop, H. Robbing the Bees: A Biography of Honey, the Sweet Liquid Gold that Seduced the World. New York, NY: Free Press, 2005. Research Articles Burke, L.M., Castell, L.M., Stear, S.J., Rogers, P.J., Bomstrand, E., Gurr, S., Mitchell, N., Stephens, F.B., and Greenhaff, P.L. “BJSM Reviews: A–Z of Nutritional Supplements: Dietary Supplements, Sports Nutrition Foods and Ergogenic Aids for Health and Performance, Part 4″. British Journal of Sports Medicine 43:14 (2009): 1088. (free extract) Erem, C., Deger, O., Ovali, E., Barlak, Y. “The Effects of Royal Jelly on Autoimmunity in Graves’ Disease.” Endocrine 30:2 (2006): 175. (PubMed Abstract) Lejaa, M., Mareczeka, A., Wyżgolika, G., Klepacz-Baniakb, J., Czekońskab, K. “Antioxidative Properties of Bee Pollen in Selected Plant Species.” Food Chemistry 100:1 (2007): 237. Li, Y.J., X, H.Z., Shou, Q.Y., Zhan, Z.G., Lu, X., Hu, F.L. “Therapeutic Effects of Propolis Essential Oil on Anxiety of Restraint-Stressed Mice.” Human and Experimental Toxicology (2011). (PubMed Abstract) Yamaguchi, M., Hamamoto, R., Uchiyama, S., Ishiyama, K., Hashimoto, K. “Preventive Effects of Bee Pollen Cistus ladaniferus Extract on Bone Loss in Streptozotocin-Diabetic Rats In Vivo.” Journal of Health Science 53:2 (2007): 190. News Articles Schneider, Andrew. “Tests Show Most Store Honey Isn’t Honey:Ultra-filtering Removes Pollen, Hides Honey Origins.” Food Safety News 7 Nov. 2011 (available here). |
| Gardening, Farming and Pollination | Return to the top |
| Books: Current Concerns and EventsMcGregor, S.E. Insect Pollination Of Cultivated Crop Plants. Originally published 1976. (link to this publication used to sit on this siteBooks: Classic Works bee information
Lovell, John H. Honey Plants of North America. Medina, OH: A.I. Root Company, 1926. Pellett, Frank C. American Honey Plants. Hamilton, IL: Dadant & Sons, 1976. Research Articles Vaknin, Y., Gan-Mor, S., Bechar, A., Ronen, B. and Eisikowitch, D. “The role of electrostatic forces in pollination.” Plant Systematics and Evolution 222 (2000): 133. Action Groups California Biosafety Alliance: Alliance of individuals and organizations working together to advocate for a GMO free food supply, as a means of pushing for a shift from an industrial food model. Partners for Sustainable Pollination: Pursues collaborative approaches between farmers, growers, beekeepers and scientists to develop ways to improve health of honey bees in pollination services and support native pollinators. Information Web Sites |
| Allergies to Bees and Bee Products | Return to the top |
| Research Articles bee informationRiches, Harry R. C. “Hypersensitivity to Bee Venom.” Bee World 63:1 (1982): 7. |
| Bees and Honey in China | Return to the top |
bee information
| Reference MaterialsHealth Canada. Chloramphenicol in Honey. |
| Research ArticlesMa, Lun Jiao. “International Comparison of the Export Competitiveness of Chinese Honey.” Asian Agricultural Research1:7 (2009): 17.Williams, Paul, An, Jiandong, Huang, Jiaxing and Yao, Jian. “BBCI: A New Initiative To Document Chinese Bumble Bees for Pollination Research.” Journal of Apicultural Research and Bee World 49:2 (2010): 221. |
| Newspaper ArticlesOberman, Mira. “US Cracks Down on Chinese Honey Smuggling Ring.” AFP1 Sep. 2010.Schneider, Andrew. Honey Laundering: A Sticky Trail of Intrigue and Crime.” Seattle PI 30 Dec. 2008. |
| Area-Specific Newsletters and Associations | Return to the top |
bee information
| AustraliaNewsletter Archives(Australian Honey Bee Industry Council)Aussie Bee email update (Australian Native Bee Research Centre)
New South Wales Illawarra Beekeepers’ Association Inc. Queensland Gold Coast Amateur Beekeepers Association Victoria |
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| CanadaBee Talk(Canadian Honey Council)New Brunswick
Ontario The Ontario Bee Journal (Ontario Beekeepers Association) Prince Edward Island Bee Newsletters (Department of Agriculture) Saskatchewan Beelines (newsletter of the provincial government) |
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| United KingdomBritish Beekeepers Association | |
| United StatesAlaskabee informationSouthcentral Alaska Beekeepers Association
Floridabee information Florida State Beekeepers Association Georgiabee information Georgia Bee Letter (University of Georgia) Maine The Bee Line (Maine State Beekeepers Association) Nebraska Bee Tidings (University of Nebraska & Nebraska Beekeepers Association). Currently ‘down for repair’. North Carolina Buncombe County Beekeepers Chapter (Asheville, NC) |
bee information
Bees Alive! will post links to newsletters and associations for free if the source is non-profit (i.e., government, university, local beekeeping association).
