Korby's Connections: Pollinator seminar had a buzz

Married for 38 years, it was a bit of a surprise when my spouse told me that I should go and learn more about the birds and the bees - bees in particular. So, I attended the Northeast Minnesota Bee Association's fifth annual winter seminar Feb. 15, co-hosted by the Environmental Institute at the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College.

Courtney Kowalczak, institute director, met me at the seminar entrance at the college. I must have had that bee-in-the-headlight look, but I told her I was from the Pine Knot and she welcomed me and informed me of the many learning opportunities and activities that were happening that day.

There were informational booths and suppliers of honey and bee products available for review and discussion for more than 160 conference attendees.

Per Roy Ober, conference attendee, beekeeper, and member of the Northeast Minnesota Bee Association, "This is the largest turnout we have had for this conference. This is great and exciting."

Why the heightened interest in bees and birds and other pollinators? In recent winters, upwards of 40 percent of the nation's bee population has been reduced. One of three bites of food eaten by Americans can be attributed to plant pollination by bees. So yes, this is alarming.

Local experts Claire Lande of Duluth and Barb Peterson of Mahtowa were the speakers at one of the first "Beginning Beekeeping" educational sessions. Claire said the first time she opened the top of a hive she didn't have a veil on and she was stung 10 times. I would have lost interest. She's learned a lot since, but sometimes the hard way.

Lande said this was not going to be a full session on entomology. (That was good for me since I had to look up the word. It means the scientific study of insects, which may be handy to know in your next trivia game.) Rather it would serve as an overview of bees and the pollination process.

I learned a lot. She said beekeeping is a journey, not a goal, and if "you have 10 questions for beekeepers, you'll get 10 different ways to do it."

Plants, of course, are critical for human existence. Without plants, we would die. But, plants don't move and they need pollinators to reproduce. Some plants use the wind, but the wind is not an efficient pollinator.

Butterflies, birds, moths, and beetles can all be pollinators, but bees are the best. Bees are fuzzy and hairy and attract pollen to be transferred. This is one big reason they are superior. There are 20,000 bee species in the world, 400 in Minnesota.

The opening speakers said that without insects, flowering plants could not reproduce. I also didn't know that honeybees can stay active all year long in Minnesota. Even with below-zero temperatures, the inside cluster in hives stays at 93 degrees. Bees are unique in that they can be "managed." Can't say that about most other bugs.

Honey was being harvested long before bees were domesticated. There are cave paintings found in eastern Spain showing this practice. Lande also mentioned a National Geographic Society film called "The Last Honey Hunter," about a person in Nepal seeking honey on cliffs for medicinal purposes. (Look it up, very impressive.) She said honeybees were brought to North America from Europe in the 1600s. Other U.S. bee history is that the Rev. Lorenzo Lorraine Langsfroth, in 1852, invented the hive most commonly used today. It had removable frames and he learned how to space bees.

I learned this much in the first 15 minutes I was at the seminar. Other sessions included Queen Management, Wintering Bees and Bee Survival in Cold Climates, Beekeeping in the Land of the Aurora Borealis, Keeping Bees Healthy Inside and Out, and Hive Languages. Experts were there from the University of Minnesota and other institutions, all part of an impressive symposium.

Again, with pollinators declining in both abundance and diversity, it catches the eye and attention of many including the Minnesota Legislature. A bill was introduced this month to allow Minnesota cities to ban bee-killing pesticides. The chemicals are blamed for the declining population of bees and butterflies, which help pollinate the state's crops. It is still controversial, for some of these pesticides are the only effective means of killing bugs like the destructive emerald ash borer.

Don't want to have bee hives or sell honey but want to support our lifesaving pollinators? What can you do in your own yard?

Some ideas are to set up a butterfly garden of native wildflowers; put up and maintain birdhouses, bird feeders, and bat houses; create multiple layers of attractive habitat for birds and beneficial insects (trees, shrubs, and groundcover); and establish a source of water such as a well-maintained bird bath or small pond.

Thanks to all the presenters, conference leaders, and bee enthusiasts for this very educational seminar.

Steve Korby's interest in writing goes back to when he was in fourth grade and editor of the Scan-Satellite school newspaper in Scanlon. He welcomes human interest stories and tales regarding Carlton County residents, projects, history, and plans.