The Native Irish Honey Bee Apis mellifera mellifera
Launched on the 18th September by our close friends and colleagues in Ireland, this book will become a ‘go to’ source of information not just for beekeepers in the island of Ireland but for all beekeepers who keep Amm bees or who want to know more. It covers all the essentials: What is a native Irish honey bee? Consideration of honey bee genetics (which will become an increasingly important issue in the 2020s as our knowledge of honey bee genetics increases), conservation, bee improvement and queen rearing, and a review of the past, present, and future for the native honey bee in Ireland. This is not just an excellent read, it is one of those books that you will keep going back to time after time.
reviewed by Selwyn Runnett
Silent Earth Averting the Insect Apocalypse Dave Goulson
Dave Goulson is familiar to most of us. He is Professor of Biology at the University of Sussex andthis is his sixth title, others included the Sunday Times bestsellers The Garden Jungle and A Sting in the Tale. The main theme of Silent Earth is that human beings need to live as part of nature, not separate from it. It is a sobering read covering why insects matter, highlighting insect declines and their causes, the dire future that could overtake us if the declines continue, and what we can all do about it. It covers all the contemporary issues relating to pollinators and is a definite ‘must read’ for all beekeepers.
reviewed by Selwyn Runnett
Dave Goulson is one of the people setting the agenda of debate relating to pollinators in the 2020s. This a key debate with which all beekeepers and beekeeping organisations will need to engage. BIBBA certainly intends to be at the centre of this debate. If you have not already seen it, it is well worthwhile reading Dave Goulson’s recent interview with Sarah Wyndham Lewis (of Bermondsey Street Bees) in the August 2021 edition of BeeCraft magazine.
Published by Jonathan Cape, 2021. ISBN: 978-1-7873-3334-5 (Hardback)