MAY | JUNE 2015
Almond Facts
35
bee strength and bee health. These
projects were covered in depth in the
November/December issue of Almond
Facts “Bee Box.”
Almond Board of
California
Blue Diamond
further invests in honey
bee research through its participation
in the Almond Board of California
(ABC). The ABC’s current slate of
pollination research projects for the
2014-2015 fiscal year total $276,175
and include three projects targeting
Varroa control strategies, support for
the long-term stock improvement
program at Washington State University
in Pullman, WA, funding to build a
Pacific Northwest Tech Transfer Team,
and two studies assessing the value of
supplemental diverse natural forage to
the health status of honey bees.
National Honey
Board
Other industry partners are making
important research investments in
honey bee health. The National Honey
Board recently approved 10 projects,
committing over $230,000 towards
honey bee health research in 2015.
Four of the projects are looking for new
sources of nutrition to benefit honey
bees and increase honey production.
Four projects target pathogens or pests,
and two are seeking more data on
pesticide exposure and interactions.
More information on completed and
ongoing projects can be found on the
Honey Board’s website,
.
California State
Beekeepers
Association
The CSBA is advancing research that
is beneficial to beekeeping practices by
funding five research projects totaling
nearly $94,000. Three are assessing
various pesticide effects, with two
specific to queen health and pesticide
interaction. Because more than half
of all queens come from California,
the CSBA is funding a free queen
diagnostics service for CA beekeepers,
which will greatly benefit queen health
and quality. A final funded research
project will analyze environmental
conditions on Varroa mite infestation.
Project Apis m.
PAm currently has invested $409,446 in
research towards enhancing honey bee
health. Three of the projects focus on
in-field diagnostics to better assess colony
strength during pollination (
Blue Diamond
funded projects). Two projects focus on
crop protection tools applied during
crop pollination. Of these two pesticide-
related studies, one is examining the
impact of fungicide applications during
blueberry pollination and another is
studying the effect of Insect Growth
Regulators (IGRs) on larval and adult
bees. One study is assessing a predatory
mite for use in control of Varroa, and
four research studies seek to understand
more about the viruses vectored by
Varroa. One study focuses on pathogens
and one on nutrition.
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