Bees, both commercially managed honey bees and wild bees, play an important role in global food production. In the United States alone, the value of insect pollination to U.S. agricultural production is estimated at $16 billion annually, of which about three-fourths is attributable to honey bees. Worldwide, the contribution of bees and other insects to global crop production for human food is valued at about $190 billion. Given the importance of bees and other types of pollinators to food production, many have expressed concern about whether a pollinator crisis has been occurring in recent decades. Worldwide reports indicate that populations of both managed honey bees and native bees have been declining, with colony losses in some cases described as severe or unusual. In Europe, managed honey bee colony numbers have been declining since the mid-1960s, and individual beekeepers have reported unusual weakening and mortality in colonies, particularly during the period spanning winter through spring. According to the United Nations, many insect pollinator species may be becoming rarer, causing some to question whether this is a sign of an overall global biodiversity decline. This book examines selected U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies bee-related monitoring, research and outreach, as well as conservation efforts, and The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) efforts to protect bees through its regulation of pesticides.

According to its chemical composition, honey is a complex mixture of over 70 ingredients, which enter honey in a variety of ways. Not only do the different types of honey differ, but the honey within each species differs in its composition depending on its herbal and geographical origin, climatic conditions, the type of bees, and the work of the beekeeper. In this book, Chapters One provides an assessment of geographical origins of honey by the use of chemometrics. Chapter Two presents the profile of physicochemical parameters of 40 samples of the black locust honey from Krapina-Zagorje region monitored by the season. Chapter Three examines the prebiotic and probiotic properties of honey. Chapter Four gives an updated review of traditional and modern uses of honey. Chapter Five explore the actual knowledge on honeys properties, in terms of cellular and molecular effects induced by the bees products on skin care and wound management.

Join Andy the Ant as he treks through an exciting adventure inside a beehive with his new friend, Beatrice the Bee. The author weaves a fun and educational story about beekeeping. Although this charming story is designed for elementary children, adult readers may learn a thing or two as well The book is loaded with fun-filled information about the duties of a beekeeper, the various jobs bees have, how bees make honey, why bees dance, and more. Andy the Ant Learns the Buzz on Bees provides highlighted vocabulary words throughout the story. Activities in the back of the book include some tasty honey recipes for kids to try at home. Parents, children, and teachers will be "abuzz" with all the un"bee"lievable facts of this charming and informative story. It is an excellent science resource for the little scientists in your life.