Thursday May 19th 7:00 PM Penn State Extension of Allegheny County 400 North Lexington Street, 3rd Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15208-2585 (Please check-in at the security office) Please also note that this event is for paid members of Burgh Bees only, and seating is limited.  To find out more about membership, please click here or visit the 'membership' tab above.  If you are not a member, you can either become a member via the membership page, or you can pay at the door. RSVP is required to attend, so please visit our EventBrite Page for this event in order to get your ticket for attendance. Topic: Colony Natural History Speaker: Dewey M. Caron (via live videoconference) Emeritus Professor, University of Delaware Affiliate Professor, Oregon State University Abstract: The key to successful bee stewardship is a working understanding of two important cycles -- the life cycle of the workers and the annual seasonal cycle of the bee colony. Looking into a colony we review the life cycle and check that all is progressing normally for workers -- if drones and queens are being reared, we are provided with some additional "clues" as to what is happening. Concentrating on the key features of the annual cycle, anticipating versus simply reacting to developments in the colony, can vastly improve annual harvest and/or enjoyment of your bees.  I will discuss the life and annual cycle of a bee colony and the current bee loss epidemic. Small-scale urban beekeepers may hold, I believe, the key to helping to understand such losses and, along with pollination fees for honey bee rental to growers needing bee pollination, the economic future of the entire bee industry. Biography: Dr. Caron has authored 5 books, numerous book