Nationally recognized scientist to discuss saving the bees at community lecture
Published April 11, 2016
The supermarket produce section would look empty if we didn’t have bees to pollinate crops. However, bee populations are in decline, which could have a major effect on the nation’s food supply.
Marla Spivak, a nationally recognized entomologist, is working on finding solutions to this problem. She will share the latest research she and her students are conducting in the University of Minnesota Bee Lab at the annual community lecture.
Spivak’s presentation is called “Pollinators in Peril: Helping Our Bees Back on their Own Six Feet.” It is scheduled for Thursday, April 28, at 7 p.m., at the Fargo Theatre.
NDSU’s role as a land-grant university is to share knowledge with the community, and one of the ways it does that is through an annual community lecture. This year, the College of Science and Mathematics is bringing a nationally recognized entomologist to talk about how each of us can help the bee population that we rely on for our food supply.
Spivak says that unlike many crises, there is a simple, yet effective, recipe for hope: plant bee-friendly flowers and don’t contaminate those flowers—or bee food—with pesticides.
Spivak will discuss her research that illustrates how:
- plant resins benefit bee health
- agricultural landscapes affect honey-bee survival
- “bee lawns” could provide new bee pastures in urban environments.
The annual community lecture aims to introduce nationally recognized scientists to the broader community. Through the years, presenters have explained their science in ways various age groups, from junior high students to older adults engaged in lifelong learning, can understand and appreciate.
The event is sponsored by NDSU’s College of Science and Mathematics.
