Expert panel on Bee Health: Free to all

Wednesday, August 12, 2015 - 7:30pm

International scientists to speak in Guelph on pollinator health 

“Emerging Issues in Pollinator Health”

 

If you’re looking to learn more about the science behind the debate on bee health, this panel of scientists working on pollinator health issues will be of interest to you.

The program features a special expert panel discussion addressing emerging issues related to pollinator health and agriculture. This will include the status and importance of pollinators in Ontario and worldwide; the results and strategies of monitoring programs in Italy; and the implications of some of the recent agricultural trends, including neonicotinoid seed treatments. This panel will be of particular interest, given the recent regulatory action in Ontario on treated seeds. Panelists will speak to the multiple stressors on pollinators as well as policy issues that must be addressed for the future health of agriculture and the environment.

This event has been organized by the University of Guelph, the Ontario Beekeepers’ Association and the Eastern Apicultural Society as part of the annual beekeeping conference, this year being held at the University of Guelph from August 10 - 14. This event is of particular interest to beekeepers and anyone interested in the factors related to pollinator health that must be addressed to reduce mortality for both honey bees and other insect pollinators. The event is open to the public at no charge.

Date:                Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Time:                7:30-9:30 pm

Location:         The University of Guelph, Rozanski 104

The expert panel includes: (see below for bios)

  • Ernesto Guzman, Professor and Director of the Honey Bee Research Centre, University of Guelph
  • Christian Krupke, Professor of Entomology, Purdue University
  • Franco Mutinelli, Professor at Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Italy
  • Nigel Raine, Rebanks Family Chair in Pollinator Conservation, University of Guelph
  • Moderator: André Flys, EAS President, OBA 2nd Vice President, and owner Pioneer Brand Honey, Nobleton.

 For more information: André Flys, (416) 807-2253 or andre@pioneerbrand.ca

 BIOS of Panel Participants:

Ernesto Guzman, Professor and Director of the Honey Bee Research Centre, University of Guelph. Research in Dr. Guzman's lab is focused on three main areas: genetics, behaviour and parasitic mites of honey bees. These studies have contributed to the understanding of foraging behaviour, defensive behaviour and the mechanisms that provide honey bees resistance against parasitic mites, a serious problem facing beekeepers worldwide. Currently, postdoctoral fellows, students and technicians in Dr. Guzman's lab are investigating the effect of parasites and pesticides on the behaviour and immune responses of honey bees.

Christian Krupke is a Professor of Entomology at Purdue University, with a primary responsibility in field crops research and extension. Dr. Krupke received his B.S. from the University of Guelph, his M.S from Simon Fraser University and his Ph.D. from Washington State University in 2004. His research program at Purdue focuses on the sustainable management of key pests of field crops, primarily corn and soybeans. His research focus areas include quantifying the costs and benefits of neonicotinoid seed treatments and assessing the impacts of various Bt corn/refuge configurations on the biology of target pests, specifically corn rootworms.

Franco Mutinelli, Professor at Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Italy, has a degree in veterinary medicine from Bologna University, Italy, and holds the Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Pathologists, and the Executive Master for management of health authorities from Bocconi University, Milan. Since 1989, he has been Veterinary Manager, IZS delle Venezie, Legnaro (Padova), Italy. He is Head of Experimental Veterinary Sciences Division, Head of Diagnostic Services Histopathology and Parasitology Department, and since 2003 Head of the National Reference Laboratory for beekeeping. His main field of activity is the diagnosis and control of honey bee diseases, environment monitoring, legislation, and education and training in apiculture, histopathology of animal diseases, neoplastic pathology and TSEs, rabies diagnosis, surveillance and control, laboratory animal husbandry and welfare, and legislation. He participates in projects funded by the Italian Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, and international projects related to honey bee and other animal diseases.

Nigel Raine, Rebanks Family Chair in Pollinator Conservation, University of Guelph. Dr. Raine, a leader in pollination conservation and ecology from Britain, joined the University of Guelph, School of Environmental Sciences (SES) in May 2014 as the Rebanks Family Chair in Pollinator Conservation. He was previously a faculty member in the School of Biological Sciences at Royal Holloway University of London. Raine studies the impacts of pesticides on bees, insect behaviour and pollination ecology. His role at Guelph is to raise awareness of the importance and plight of pollinators, inform public policy, and help train highly qualified conservationists and agriculturalists, all critical to the health of pollinators and food systems. He is a Fellow of both the Royal Entomological Society and the Linnean Society of London, has held academic positions at Sheffield University, the Zoological Society of London and Queen Mary University of London and has studied zoology and biological sciences at Magdalen College, University of Oxford