Characterizing the Foraging Patterns and Choices of Honeybees at New Bolton Center
Honeybees are essential contributors to sustainable agriculture, pollinating $15 billion worth of fruits, nuts, and vegetables in the U.S. annually. The health and survival of honeybees depends in large part on the plants available to them for foraging, with different types of flowers needed for honeybees to meet all their nutritional requirements.
Because honeybees were recently classified as “food animals” requiring veterinary oversight for medical prescriptions, honeybee hives were installed at New Bolton Center in 2024 to teach veterinary students about honeybee medicine. As a first step in launching an associated honeybee research program, we propose to produce a comprehensive assessment of the plants available to and chosen by our bees to pollinate through a combination of pollen/honey analysis, census of the flowering plants in the vicinity, and observation of bees’ forage communication behaviors (the waggle dance). This critical information will inform future research on honeybee health/microbiome health, honey production, and pollination patterns.
This grant is made possible by the Goldsmith Research Fund, a gift from Carl H. Goldsmith (W ‘88).
Laurel E. Redding
Associate Professor of Epidemiology, PennVetLaurel E. Redding is a associate professor of epidemiology at PennVet. She is also the director of the Human-Animal Health Interface at Penn Vet’s Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Safety.
