KALAMAZOO — Bees looking to build a new hive may see small holes in roofs or siding as the perfect place to infiltrate a home and start a new colony, and homeowners need to be cautious when evicting the winged invaders. Home remedies like spraying insecticide in the wall can cause costly damage and attract other unwanted guests, and there are plenty of local beekeepers available to transport the bees so they can fulfill their honey-making destiny.

via Got hives? As in bees? Call in a professional keeper, don’t make it a DIY project | MLive.com.

The first time I looked at a bee’s eye magnified I was amazed to see a field of hexagons, just like honeycomb. I wondered, is this a coincidence or a clue? Is it simply that hexagons are ubiquitous in nature, or is there a deeper correspondence between the structure of the bee’s vision and the structure she builds – in other words, similar frequencies being expressed in similar form?

via Rose-Lynn Fisher / BEE.

It was a good bonfire. Lots of folks came. Great times!

Photos after the break.

Bonfire Spring 2010

Want to find America’s most successful entrepreneurs? Skip Silicon Valley and Manhattan; head to the rural Amish enclaves.Amish businesses have an eye-popping 95% success rate at staying open at least five years, according to author Erik Wesner’s new book, Success Made Simple: An Inside Look at Why Amish Businesses Thrive.

via Why Amish businesses don’t fail – May. 4, 2010.

Photos after the break…

Honeybee Split

When faced with a choice between carb loading and a protein-rich, Atkins-style diet, honeybees let their guts decide.

Insulin signals from fat cells in the bees’ abdomens help determine whether they forage for high-protein pollen or sugar-filled nectar, a new study shows. The study, published April 1 in PLoS Genetics, is the first to manipulate insulin signals in honeybees and to show how changes in the signals influence behavior.

via Bees Forage With Their Guts – Science News.

A bell jar was placed on top of a mini hive and bees from the nucleus started to create foundation of a hive in the jar. Once the foundation is laid, the bees work in masses to form the rest of the hive. 14 more pics of bees making hive in a jar after the jump.

via Bees Makes Hive In A Jar.

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CHAMPAIGN, lll. – Researchers report this week that they have found a surprising but reliable marker of colony collapse disorder, a baffling malady that in 2007-2008 killed off more than a third of commercial honey bees in the U.S.

Their study, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the first to identify a single, objective molecular marker of the disorder, and to propose a data-driven hypothesis to explain the mysterious disappearance of American honey bees. The team included researchers from the University of Illinois and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

via Genomic study yields plausible cause of colony collapse disorder | News Bureau | University of Illinois.

Hausen et al. [46] reported that propolis has been used as an ingredient in violin varnish for centuries. Stradivari is said to have used it in the varnish of his instruments. Propolis, also known as bee glue, is produced by bees during hive construction to fill structural gaps. It has approximately 50 constituents, primarily resins and vegetable balsams 50%, waxes 30%, essential and aromatic oils 10%, and pollen 5%. Since ancient times, this agent has also been incorporated into numerous medical and cosmetic products since it is believed to be a potent antiseptic and anti-inflammatory substance, local anaesthetic, adstringent, and antioxidant. Moreover propolis may be found in toothpaste, mouthwash preparations, facial creams, chewing gum, polishes, and varnishes.

via BioMed Central | Full text | Contact dermatitis and other skin conditions in instrumental musicians.