[Pollinator] NAPPC Funds Research Projects to Improve Honey Bee Health

[Anthony Colangelo]

*NAPPC Funds Research Projects to Improve Honey Bee Health*



The North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) has awarded six
new research grants related to honey bee health issues which have been
funded by a combination of a *USDA APHIS* grant and donations from *Pollinator
Partnership’s (P2)* generous donors. Each project will explore one or more
identified priority areas that will investigate the stressors impacting
honey bees in North America.



The NAPPC Honey Bee Health Task Force, co-chaired by *Dr. Olav Rueppell,
University of Alberta and Dr. Barry Thompson, Estate and Orchard Bee
Keeping, LLC*, solicits proposals each January from University professors,
researchers, and graduate students who are at the forefront of bee health
issues including pesticide exposure, pests and disease, and climate
effects, among other areas. Research topics are diverse and aim to support
bees and beekeepers, and to educate policymakers and land managers.



This spring, the *NAPPC Honey Bee Health Task Force* convened an expert
panel to review the proposals, which included *Laurie Adams, Jay Evans,
Ph.D., Gloria Degrandi-Hoffman, Ph.D., Lora Morandin, Ph.D., Olav Rueppell,
Ph.D., Barry Thompson, Ph.D., and Vicki Wojcik, Ph.D.* The committee funded
6 outstanding research proposals that will elucidate the complexities
surrounding honey bee management and conservation. The following projects
have been chosen from many high caliber submissions to the NAPPC Task Force
and will report their progress at the annual NAPPC International
Conference, hosted virtually, October 19-21, 2021:



· *Laura Avila, PhD., Nicole Gerardo, PhD., *and *Berry Brosi, PhD. *at *Emory
University* and the *University of Washington* are investigating *bee gut
microbiome changes and pathogen prevalence after exposure to agricultural
antibiotics*.


· *Lewis J Bartlett, PhD. *at the *University of Georgia *is *trialing a
novel insecticide to control small hive beetle infestation and encourage
supplementary pollen feeding as part of honey bee health*.


· *Adam G Dolezal, PhD. *at the *University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign *is researching whether* improved diet quality can
ameliorate the interactive effects of sublethal pesticide exposure and
viral infection in honey bees.*


· *Brock Harpur, PhD., Keith Pardee, PhD., *and *Margot Karlikow, PhD.
*at *Purdue
University *and the* University of Toronto *are exploring the *development
of inexpensive CRISPR-Cas12a assays to detect honey bee virii in the field.*


· *Evan Palmer-Young, PhD. *at the *USDA Agricultural Research Service Bee
Research Laboratory *is quantifying whether *temperature enhances
microbiome-mediated resistance to infection in honey bees.*


· *Ilse Ruiz-Mercado *at the *Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México* is
exploring *climate change mitigation through rainwater harvesting
ecotechnologies to reduce drought stress in honey bee colonies in southern
Mexico.*



More than 20 donors contributed to the funding of the 2021 Honey Bee Health
grants, with the largest funding resulting from a long-standing partnership
with the *U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service*. Honey Bee Health Grants have been distributed annually for the
past 14 years, totaling more than $650,000 in research support for 74 research
programs in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Individuals are
encouraged to make tax-deductible donations of any amount to help fund
these grants by choosing the “Honey Bee Health Research” option at
www.pollinator.org/donate or by designating donations for honey bee
research when sending a donation via mail. You may contact *Savannah Autran* of
Pollinator Partnership at savannah at pollinator.org or at 415.362.1137 to
learn more about the program.



The request for proposals for 2022 research projects will be distributed in
November 2021. Visit www.pollinator.org/honeybee-health for more
information.


*ABOUT THE NORTH AMERICAN POLLINATOR PROTECTION CAMPAIGN (NAPPC)*

For over 15 years, NAPPC has brought together stakeholders form all sectors
of the pollinator issue in a collaborative partnership to support
pollinator health across the North American continent. More than any other
single organization, the collective effort of these 180 plus organizations
has made pollinator health a feature in conservation landscape management.
>From its many Task Forces, NAPPC affects change and moves solid science
into real progress on the ground. Managed by the Pollinator Partnership,
more can be found about NAPPC at www.nappc.org.



 *ABOUT POLLINATOR PARTNERSHIP (P2)*

Established in 1997, Pollinator Partnership is the largest 501(c) 3
non-profit organization dedicated exclusively to the health, protection,
and conservation of all pollinating animals. Pollinator Partnership’s
actions for pollinators include education, conservation, restoration,
policy, and research.  P2’s financial support comes through grants, gifts,
memberships and donations from any interested party. Its policies are
science-based, set by its board of directors, and never influenced by any
donor.  To make a donation or for information on events during Pollinator
Week, visit www.pollinator.org.


*Read and download the full Press Release at*
https://www.pollinator.org/in-the-news

Anthony Colangelo (he/him)
Communications Coordinator
Pollinator Partnership Canada

PO Box 73619

Wychwood PO

Toronto, Ontario

c: 647-895-2393

<https://www.pollinatorpartnership.ca/>
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