Honey Bee Awareness Project

THANK YOU Häagen-Dazs!  Do the Honey Bee!

Check out what corporate America is doing to help our BEES!

I arrived in MN on Monday March 26 and have already missed the Maple bloom.  Bees have boxes of brood and I have even seen some swarm cells.  Peak apple blossom is a month early and beekeepers are scrambling to get bees for pollination.

Usually, package bees would come in mid April and be built up enough for apple pollination, but because of the late spring, our packages are late and blossoms are early and it is a scramble to find overwintered colonies to foot the bill.

I have hit the ground running building the Bee Squad program, working with customers, and just having a blast.  Pictures to follow.

I would like to invite you to attend the public presentation portion of my thesis defense. Tuesday March 20th at 3:00 pm in Environmental Science (ES) 310.  There will also be a reception afterward probably at the Copper Hog around 6:30ish.  Please join in!

My thesis title is:

Salmon in the trees: An assessment of dendrochemical techniques

for detecting marine-derived nitrogen in riparian tree rings

In this study I examine the reliability of using a "salmon signal" in tree rings to reconstruct historic spawning abundances and delineate historic spawning ranges.  It is quite an interesting study and one I am honored to share.

Why would I complete a masters of environmental science in Freshwater Ecology when my life path is to work with bees?  Good question and one I have pondered at great length.

Here is the commonality.  Salmon impact the ecosystems in which they live in innumerable ways.  The nutrients they bring to freshwater systems becomes incorporated into the system at every level of the food chain.  This is known as the salmon conveyor belt.  Bottom line- salmon are very important. By helping salmon we help a whole host of ecosystem functions and critters.

Bees likewise impact their surroundings in a disproportionate way.  Pollinators enable flowering plants to reproduce which in turn provides clean air, clean water, and food and homes for all of earth's creatures.  By helping these bees, we can have an enormous impact on keeping the world a clean and healthy place for us all to live.

That's my truth and I am sticking to it!  Hope to see you Tuesday.