honey bees

Brandon Hopkins, 42, with Washington State University, stands in front of the university’s bee colonies at a facility in Othello, Washington, where he and a team were examining the hives.

Northwest bees that fly during mild winters are dying quicker than before

Anna King

New research out of Washington State University says that colonies of bees that fly in warm weather during fall and winter die quicker for lack of forage.

With an American honeybee queen for a mother and a European honeybee drone for a father, this worker bee has a level of genetic diversity unseen in the U.S. for decades. Researchers at Washington State University hope a deeper gene pool will give a new generation of honeybees much-needed genetic traits, like resistance to varroa mites. The parasite kills a third of American honeybees each year.

Science

No Offense, American Bees, But Your Sperm Isn't Cutting It

Ryan Bell

U.S. bees are in trouble, and one of the major threats is a deadly parasite called varroa mite. So researchers are importing sperm from European bees resistant to mites to toughen up America's stock.

Environment

How A 'Sperm Bank' Is Saving Honey Bees

Think of it as a sperm bank for honey bees. That is essentially what you’ll find at Washington State University’s apiary lab. There’s even a “fertility…

Earlier this year, beekeeper Brian Hiatt had millions of bees working to pollinate almond trees across California.

News

With Bees In Trouble, Almond Farmers Try Trees That Don't Need 'Em

Ezra David Romero

A relatively new variety of almond tree called Independence has some beekeepers nervous. These trees are self-fertile — meaning they technically don't need bees to pollinate their flowers.

Wash. state pressed to save honey bees by restricting pesticides

Tom Banse

This is the time of year when local farmers count on bees and other insects to pollinate orchards and vegetable and berry fields. The change in the…