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In the last two years, between fifty and ninety percent of the domestic bee populations in the United States have died. The loss of these hives has been named Colony Collapse Disorder. Though we know that the colonies die because their worker bees abandon the hive, no one knows what causes them to do so or how to solve the problem. The bees’ ecological role as important pollinators means that if domestic bee populations drop significantly, portions of U.S. Agriculture will yield substantially smaller crops, and the North American flora may change significantly.

My grandfather has been a beekeeper for several decades. As an entomologist and professor of biology he did research on bees, studying their communication patterns. Since he retired, his beekeeping hobby keeps him busy and involved in the community – helping other apiculturists get started, attending regional beekeeping meetings, and studying to become a master beekeeper. When he’s not working with bees or the plants that depend on them, my grandfather spends his time with my grandmother, which has been an increasingly time-consuming activity since she got Alzheimer’s and has been losing her ability to function normally.

Photographer

The Apiculturist
Branches
Grandma's Flower Garden
Grandma diptych a
Collapse
The Avian Series
Draft
Avian I
Avian II
Avian III
Avian IV
Avian V
Avian VI
Avian VII
Avian VIII
Avian IX
Avian X
Aerial
Untitled (Insect)
Untitled (Butterfly)
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Swallowtail