I am Richard and fascinated by all things honey bees. Already as a student I studied bee diseases and put my knowledge into practice as a beekeeper. I then extended my research interest to the interaction of bees especially with agricultural practices.
Together with my wife we run an apiary with about 20-30 bee colonies. We produce our own local honey, breed queens and establish new colonies every year.
The investigation of interactions between plant protection products and pathogens is still one of the core topics of my work. The special focus is on the sublethal influences of plant protection products on individual and colony development in honey bees. In order to measure such effects, which often remain unrecognized, I use the latest techniques (such as RFID or capacitive sensor technology) to map, for example, influences on the flight behavior of bees.
Recently, our joint project “NutriBee” was funded with over 1.2 million EUR. In this project, we are investigating the interactions between abiotic stress factors such as fungicide exposure and pollen deprivation on bee health at the colony level.
The broad goal of my research here at the JKI “Institute for Bee Protection” is ultimately to advance method development for risk assessment of honey bees for chronic and sublethal effects after pesticide application. I mainly consider laboratory, semi-field and field studies with a stron focus on realistic beekeeping scenarios.
You can learn a little more about my research on this page. Contact possibilities are also available.
Related research and beekeeping activities
- Member of the „International Commission for Plant-Pollinator Relationships (ICP-PR)“
- Member of the „Prevention of honey bee COlony LOSSes (COLOSS)“ network
- Consultant to the „State Association of Beekeepers in Baden-Württemberg“
- Associate Editor at the “Journal of Applied Entomology”
- Project monitor for research programs of the the European Commission
- OECD peer reviewer for ecotoxicity testing
Latest feed from twitter
Einstein never said this. Not only that, but there are more honeybees in the world than ever before - they are NOT going to die out. Wild #bees, on the other hand, are much more threatened. Let's stick to the facts, yes?
Have you submitted your abstract for #BeeCon2024 yet?
There's still time! Abstract submissions close on August 2nd, don't delay! BeeCon a free, hybrid conference for bee researchers around the world. Learn more about BeeCon and submit your abstract: https://yorku.ca/bees/beecon-2024/