Latest news with #pollinators
Associated Press
12 hours ago
- General
- Associated Press
Botanical Artists Mini-Expo Features The Wright Scoop
Expo takes place on June 6 at Tuckahoe Area Library in Henrico, Virginia The Botanical Artists Mini-Expo will be held on June 6 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Tuckahoe Area Library, located at 1901 Starling Dr. in Henrico County, Virginia. Featured artist, The Wright Scoop – Sylvia Hoehns Wright, will greet and talk with visitors. 'Redbud Tree,' one of two of her illustrations in the exhibit on plants and pollinators, is an identified " Plant of CARE.' Other participants will demo the tools and techniques of the botanical artist trade as well as help attendees draw a plant from real specimens with watercolor pencils. For kids, there will be plenty of activities, including butterfly coloring sheets, make-a-flower-and-bee craft, learning how mushrooms save bees, and making botanical zines and acquiring botanical tattoos (in lieu of face painting). A video playing in the background—beekeepers at work—is provided via courtesy of Sylvia Hoehns Wright. Artist, author, and lecturer Sylvia Hoehns Wright has been featured for her woodland gardens by Birds & Blooms magazine and in Richmond newspapers and is recognized nationwide as an eco-sustainability advocate, backpage columnist, and TV radio personality. To inspire others, Wright exhibits her art during Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden events and uses it to illustrate plants in her 'Plants of CARE' program. The expo is sponsored by Central Virginia Botanical Artists, an affiliate of the American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA). For details visit: About The Wright Scoop – Sylvia Hoehns Wright A graduate of the Virginia Natural Resource Leadership Institute program and a recipient of the 'Turning America from Eco-weak to Eco-chic' award, The Wright Scoop – Sylvia Hoehns Wright urges all to keep America beautiful and become people who CARE—have a perspective of conservation, accountability, recovery and eco-efficiency. To inspire others, she offers one-on-one consulting, speeches and workshops and has published a series of eco books. For more information, visit email sy[email protected], or follow her activities on social media through Facebook group The Wright Scoop or @WrightScoop on Twitter/X. Media Contact Sylvia Hoehns Wright [email protected] ### SOURCE: The Wright Scoop – Sylvia Hoehns Wright Copyright 2025 EZ Newswire
The National
3 days ago
- Business
- The National
Building a buzz: How UAE property developers are integrating bees into urban communities
In the mountainous enclave of Hatta, a new partnership between honeybee research centre Hatta Honey and a property firm aims to get landscapes buzzing. The initiative, called Yalla Beena! Preserving the Pollinators of the UAE, brings together Amwaj Development, Green Gardenia Landscaping and the One Hive Group. They have launched a project to reintroduce native bee species, cultivate pollinator-friendly plants and place biodiversity at the core of new developments. 'This isn't about branding,' says Meriem Hammal, a beekeeper and business development manager at One Hive. 'It's about rebuilding ecosystems that urbanisation has pushed to the brink. Pollinators aren't optional. They're essential to life.' Globally, pollinator numbers have plummeted, with climate change, pesticide use and habitat loss driving colony collapses at unprecedented rates. In the UAE, which has recently seen record-breaking temperatures, the impact is particularly stark. 'Last April was one of the wettest on record. This year, it's the hottest. Bees can't adapt that quickly,' says Hammal. 'They get disoriented. Colonies collapse. One day they're thriving, the next, the hive is empty.' Integrating bee-friendly flora The Yalla Beena! project – its name a playful twist on the Arabic for 'Let's go!' and 'bee' – began this year when Green Gardenia adopted three hives of native Apis mellifera bees rescued by One Hive from urban gardens and roadside nests. The hives, each home to about 60,000 bees, were relocated to the Hatta Honey Bee Discovery Centre, where they now support local flora and form the backbone of a wider ecological education programme. What sets this project apart is its integration into the development process. Green Gardenia is redesigning urban landscapes using melliferous plants – which are rich in nectar and pollen – tailored to native pollinators. Amwaj's next residential launch in Dubai will incorporate these bee-friendly plants, alongside monitoring programmes and, potentially, hives placed on site. 'Too often, developers choose landscaping for aesthetic value only,' says Hammal. 'But not all flowers feed bees. We're designing spaces that look beautiful and function ecologically.' Aida Al Shehabi, chief operating officer at Amwaj Development, says the move reflects the firm's broader vision to create communities that are not only intelligently designed, but also environmentally friendly. 'Through strategic collaborations like this one, we are proving that real estate development and ecological stewardship can – and must – go hand in hand.' Bees thrive with the right resources The project reflects a growing shift in the property sector's approach to sustainability. Long criticised for greenwashing and monoculture planting, some developers are beginning to reframe biodiversity as not just a branding tool, but a business imperative. 'There's definitely a trend,' says Hammal. 'We've had interest from hotels, schools and now real estate. But we're selective. We don't want to be a tick box. This has to be real.' One Hive's work spans field research, queen bee breeding, swarm rescue and mentorship programmes. The group also runs school visits and public training, and is launching 100 Hives, 100 Schools – a campaign to embed beekeeping and pollinator education in UAE classrooms. Hammal, a trained vet from Algeria, came to bees by accident. She found herself lost and disillusioned in her third year of studies. Then she met a beekeeper. 'He never went to school. But he was calm, confident, intuitive with the bees. That changed everything for me,' she says. 'I realised these creatures organise themselves better than most human institutions. They sacrifice for the collective. They're endlessly resilient.' That resilience is being tested. As climate change is causing more extreme weather events globally, bees – and the crops they support – face mounting stress. 'They're foraging earlier or later than expected, flowers are blooming at the wrong times, and rain now damages more than it helps,' says Hammal. 'If we don't act, we'll lose them. And if we lose them, we lose our food.' The stakes, she says, are existential. 'Bees pollinate 75 to 80 per cent of our fruit and vegetables. It's not about honey. It's about food security. It's about survival.' UAE developers balancing nature with design Elsewhere in the UAE, developers are starting to respond to the issue. The Sustainable City in Dubai was an early adopter of integrating pollinators into community plans. In 2018, 250 beehives were bought under the My Hive programme to provide residents with organic honey and raise awareness of bees' important ecological role. This year, renowned conservationist Jane Goodall opened a bee sanctuary named after her in Expo City Dubai. It is a haven to more than 30,000 of the insects. Arada's Masaar community in Sharjah is planting 50,000 trees. Aldar's The Wilds project promotes rewilding principles in suburban Dubai. But for Hammal, the benchmark remains integrity. 'The bees can tell if you're faking it,' she laughs. 'They either thrive or they leave.' In Hatta, the hives hum with quiet urgency. Summer is coming and with it, a harsh test of survival. But for now, the bees are working – pollinating the mountain blooms, educating visiting schoolchildren and, perhaps, rewriting the blueprint for sustainable development in the desert.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
250 million bees on the loose in Washington state after truck rolls over
Credit: Whatcom County Sheriff's Office An estimated 250 million bees are on the loose in the US state of Washington after a lorry carrying beehives rolled over on Friday. Authorities reported that a commercial lorry carrying 70,000 pounds of pollinator beehives overturned in the town of Lynden, five miles south of the border with Canada, allowing 250 million bees to make their escape. '250 million bees are now loose,' the Whatcom county sheriff's department posted on social media. 'AVOID THE AREA due to the potential of bee escape and swarming.' More than two dozen beekeepers assisted emergency responders – some of whom were stung – with recapturing the bees, a spokesman for the sheriff's department told local media. The swarm of bees was so dense, it was 'like a cloud', Derek Condit, one of the beekeepers, told local media. 'It was pretty chaotic.' Some of the beekeepers were reportedly stung over a dozen times and were using tape to plug holes in their suits. 'I've never had that many bees – angry bees – at one time,' said Russell Deptuch, another local beekeeper, in an interview with local media. The lorry was on its way to the US state of South Dakota when it rolled over early on Friday morning. However, it was a botched rescue mission several hours later which ultimately caused the mass flight as a tow truck attempted to pull the vehicle out of a ditch, causing the hives to fall off. 'Unfortunately, that didn't happen as smoothly as was hoped, and some of the beehives broke open, which caused all the bees to swarm, which is how we're in the situation we're in now,' said Matt Klein, the deputy director of the division of emergency management for the sheriff's department, in a statement. The aim of the recovery operation is to save as many bees as possible and allow them to re-hive and find their queen, which the sheriff's department estimated would take one or two days. Although there is a large number of bees needing to be recaptured, the insects are social and drawn to their hives, meaning they are likely to stay near the truck. 'That's where their queen and the next generation of bees (the 'brood') are located,' Gene Robinson, a professor of entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, told The New York Times. Each hive tends to contain between 40,000 and 60,000 bees, Mr Robinson said. As of Friday afternoon, the beekeepers and emergency responders had restored most of the hives, and the majority of the insects are expected to return by Saturday morning, the sheriff's department said. Until then, the road has been closed and the public advised to stay at least 200 yards from the area. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
250 million bees on the loose in Washington state after truck rolls over
An estimated 250 million bees are on the loose in the US state of Washington after a lorry carrying beehives rolled over on Friday. Authorities reported that a commercial lorry carrying 70,000 pounds of pollinator beehives overturned in the town of Lynden, five miles south of the border with Canada, allowing 250 million bees to make their escape. '250 million bees are now loose,' the Whatcom county sheriff's department posted on social media. 'AVOID THE AREA due to the potential of bee escape and swarming.' More than two dozen beekeepers assisted emergency responders – some of whom were stung – with recapturing the bees, a spokesman for the sheriff's department told local media. The swarm of bees was so dense, it was 'like a cloud', Derek Condit, one of the beekeepers, told local media. 'It was pretty chaotic.' Some of the beekeepers were reportedly stung over a dozen times and were using tape to plug holes in their suits. 'I've never had that many bees – angry bees – at one time,' said Russell Deptuch, another local beekeeper, in an interview with local media. The lorry was on its way to the US state of South Dakota when it rolled over early on Friday morning. However, it was a botched rescue mission several hours later which ultimately caused the mass flight as a tow truck attempted to pull the vehicle out of a ditch, causing the hives to fall off. 'Unfortunately, that didn't happen as smoothly as was hoped, and some of the beehives broke open, which caused all the bees to swarm, which is how we're in the situation we're in now,' said Matt Klein, the deputy director of the division of emergency management for the sheriff's department, in a statement. The aim of the recovery operation is to save as many bees as possible and allow them to re-hive and find their queen, which the sheriff's department estimated would take one or two days. Although there is a large number of bees needing to be recaptured, the insects are social and drawn to their hives, meaning they are likely to stay near the truck. 'That's where their queen and the next generation of bees (the 'brood') are located,' Gene Robinson, a professor of entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, told The New York Times. Each hive tends to contain between 40,000 and 60,000 bees, Mr Robinson said. As of Friday afternoon, the beekeepers and emergency responders had restored most of the hives, and the majority of the insects are expected to return by Saturday morning, the sheriff's department said. Until then, the road has been closed and the public advised to stay at least 200 yards from the area.
New York Times
3 days ago
- General
- New York Times
250 Million Honeybees Escape After a Truck Rolls Over in Washington State
In the northwest corner of Washington State on Friday morning, the authorities issued a most unusual all-points bulletin, rather, an They said in the alert to the public that 250 million fugitives were at large. A tractor-trailer carrying 70,000 pounds of pollinator hives and bees had rolled over on a country road near Lynden, Wash., releasing an eye-popping number of honeybees, the authorities said. '250 million bees are now loose,' the Whatcom County Sheriff's Department wrote on social media. Then came an all-caps warning: 'AVOID THE AREA due to the potential of bee escape and swarming.' Several emergency responders were stung while sheriff's deputies, working with master beekeepers, tried to recapture the bees, said Amy Cloud, a spokeswoman for the sheriff's department. Officials advised the public to stay at least 200 yards away from where the truck overturned, which was in a sparsely populated area about 100 miles north of Seattle. The goal was to allow the bees to re-hive and find their queen bee, a process that should happen within 24 to 48 hours, they said. It was not clear what caused the tractor-trailer to roll over. Officials did not identify the driver. Because they are highly social by nature and drawn to their hives, the bees were likely to settle down and stay close to the truck, said Gene E. Robinson, a professor of entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an expert on insect social behavior and genomics. 'That's where their queen and the next generation of bees (the 'brood') are located,' Professor Robinson said in an email on Friday. At this time of year, each beehive typically contains about 40,000 to 60,000 bees, according to Professor Robinson, who said beekeepers should be able to get most of the bees back into their hives if they were not damaged. 'Migratory beekeeping is essential for the production of many important fruit, nut, and vegetable crops and migratory beekeepers are unsung heroes,' he said. Friday's honeybee infestation was not the first time that wayward insects have created a problem for the people of Whatcom County. It was there at the end of the last decade that the invasive species known as the 'murder hornet' established a home until its eradication in 2024.
