12 Jun 2019

The cost of covering up: Bees prevented from doing their job

From Nine To Noon, 9:40 am on 12 June 2019

Around three quarters of the world's food crops rely on pollinators like bees - but what happens if they can't actually get to the crop?

That's been the subject of a recent study carried out by Plant & Food Research, which examined the effects of the use of protective covers over kiwifruit crops in the Bay of Plenty.

Research leader Dr Lisa Evans joins Kathryn to explain the findings.

Honey bees are important for kiwifruit pollination, colonies are brought into orchards during flowering. Dr Brian Cutting, Plant & Food Research

Crops are covered with netting to enhance growing conditions, but honey bees can become disorientated in these environments. Dr Brian Cutting, Plant & Food Research

Dr. Lisa Evans of Plant & Food Research inspects a hive as part of an experiment to determine how covers affect bees. Dr Brian Cutting, Plant & Food Research

A frame of honey bees taken from within a hive. A bee on the right hand side has been fitted with an RFID tag. Dr Brian Cutting, Plant & Food Research

)Special tag readers fitted to hives recorded when foraging bees left the hive, and importantly, whether or not they found their way back home. Dr Lisa Evans, Plant & Food Research

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The cost of covering up: Bees prevented from doing their job

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