Hello all!
This week I want to go over the importance of bees!
Bees play a very important role in our environment and unfortunately as many of you may be aware they are going through some tough times currently. As of January of last year the rusty patched bumble bee populations have decreased over 90%. This has been the case for many other species of bees across the US. It is important to understand what factors are causing this and what we can do to help the cause for our little buddies.
I want to help discuss the who, what, when, where, whys that are affecting the bee population and also go over how beekeepers are helping the populations out. In addition, talk about some of the benefits that having bees on the farm can bring.
Here is a quick article showing some of the benefits:
https://www.perfectbee.com/learn-about-bees/the-science-of-bees/the-benefits-of-bees/
Lastly we will discuss the benefits of the sweetest part of helping the bees out, honey! ft. the one and only Edd Champagne
For the comments we will keep it lighthearted and fun, feel free to leave any fun facts you have of our amazing little buddies!
Mine is the fact that bees can learn and teach other bees how to play soccer! (sorta...)
Link to video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToZDCo51c_I
Happy 10th week ya'll!
My fun fact is that honey bees beat their wings 200 times per SECOND! This creates their trademark buzzzzzz
ReplyDeleteAccording to last year's bee census, 465 different species of bees live in Michigan: https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2017/new-discovery-more-bees-mark-michigans-first-full-bee-census/
ReplyDeleteThough many people are afraid of or allergic to bee stings, they can actually have positive affects on human lives in relation to diseases.
ReplyDeleteThe melittin toxin can be extracted from bee venom and is currently being tested as a potential cure for HIV by suppressing viral replication while leaving surrounding cells unaffected. Researchers in Germany first began this research in 1998: you can access the full article (pdf) through the following link: http://jgv.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-79-4-731
Subsequent research in 2012 has suggested that melittin can potentially be used in a vaginal virucide topical gel: https://www.intmedpress.com/journals/avt/article.cfm?id=2346&pid=48&sType=AVT
In addition, molecules in bee venom can increase the body's glucocorticoid, an anti-inflammatory protein that can ease pain from autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, and potentially even cancer: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0163725807000782
My fun fact I actually learned in math class. Bees construct a honeycomb in the shape of a regular hexagonal plane because it maximized the number of hexagons packed together. Bees are mathematicians ✨
ReplyDeleteWhen bees change jobs, they actually change their brain chemistry. There are certain kinds of bees that are wired to do specific jobs. Regular honeybees, however, perform multiple jobs in their lifetime and change their brain chemistry before beginning a new job.
ReplyDeleteMy fun fact is that Bees can actually recognize human faces. They do this through something called “configular processing,” which is basically them recognizing different parts of our face and putting them all together to make a whole face. I thought this was pretty interesting!
ReplyDeleteSource: http://mentalfloss.com/article/53691/13-fascinating-facts-about-bees
There's a frequently repeated "fact" that bumble bees defy the laws of physics in their flight, but this is actually wrong, this statement assumes bees fly the same way as an airplane .
ReplyDeleteJust like the episode of black mirror, Wal Mart has patented an autonomous robot bee. Think of it as a tiny drone. I sure hope these do not become necessary, this is quite scary. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/03/autonomous-robot-bees-are-being-patented-by-walmart
ReplyDeleteBees are dancers! To share information about the best food sources, they perform a ‘waggle dance’. When the worker returns to the hive, it moves in a figure-eight and waggles its body to indicate the direction of the food source.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite fact about bees is the fact that your average bee will only make 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime. There's a comedian that does a bit about how when you feed a sick bee a bit of honey, you're essentially nullifying its life's work.
ReplyDeleteXarelto 10mg Tablet is a prescription medicine used to reduce the risk of stroke and blood clots in people with atrial fibrillation, not caused by a heart valve problem.To reduce your risk of an AFib-related stroke, you should take XARELTO® once a day with your evening meal. Take your next dose at your regularly scheduled time.
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