Honey Bee is a painting by Tom Blodgett Jr which was uploaded on December 15th, 2010.
Honey Bee
We have long understood the value of their honey, but we may be just beginning to appreciate the value that bees have for the meat, cotton, fruits... more
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Dimensions
20.000 x 14.000 inches
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Title
Honey Bee
Artist
Tom Blodgett Jr
Medium
Painting - Watercolor
Description
We have long understood the value of their honey, but we may be just beginning to appreciate the value that bees have for the meat, cotton, fruits and vegetables that we consume. The Honey Bee is responsible for 80% of all insect pollination, upon which vegetation and fruit yields depend. One can see why this tiny insect can have such a profound impact when it pollinates 90 commercial crops worldwide.
The complexity of this organism has also largely gone unappreciated. Bees demonstrate a coordinated intelligence that allows them to collectively make decisions such as choosing the best site for a nest, where each scout voices its opinion of a potential site through the strength of its "waggle" dance. They also communicate through chemical signals.
Causes for Concern
In the US, for the fourth year in a row, more than a third of colonies have failed to survive the winter. Billions of bees worldwide have died since 2006.
There is no silver bullet, but many culprits. 121 kinds of pesticides have been sound in samples of bees, wax, and pollen. [Non-organic bee factories often use antibiotics, carbolic acid for the removal of honey, calcium cyanide use for killing colonies before extracting the honey, and the fumigation of comb honey according to the Entomology Research Division of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).] The bloodsucking varroa mite is another problem. Even the magnetite that helps guide the bee is an excellent absorber of cell phone frequencies. German studies have shown bees refuse to return to hives when a mobile phone is nearby.
So what can be done to help? If you are inspired to take on the age old tradition of bee keeping, and can offer them a natural, non-toxic environment, then this is one way to help. Harvest your honey with as little disruption of the hive as possible, understanding that excess honey is created in the spring and summer. This is a seasonal treat. But be sure you know more about it, as bee stings can be dangerous.
You can also create a garden of flowers indigenous to your natural habitat that provides pollen and nectar resources to the native bees. Consult a local gardening center for advice on bee-friendly florals. Patches of flowers planted in close proximity (more closely mimics nature), and a good diversity of species are extremely helpful to the bees. And dont use pesticides. Purchase your honey from raw, local food producers. Supporting organic producers in general makes it easier to avoid chemicals within 3 miles, the range of most hives.
Potential Applications
Using the algorithms of the dance of bees, we can eventually have appliances speak to one another in the most efficient way possible.
Uploaded
December 15th, 2010