May Membership Meeting

The May Membership meeting will be on May 18th (a week later due to Mother’s Day). New beekeeper meeting will be at 1pm.

This month’s speaker will be Bill Hesbach who is well known for his research, publications and presentations on condensing hives.

Thermoregulation and Ventilation

The talk starts with how bees control the internal hive temperature using thermoregulation and what effect that has on the colony. Then, we discuss convection flows inside a colony as a precursor to understanding ventilation. In the final segment, I introduce the concept of a condensing colony versus the more common practice of adding ventilation. Participants will better understand what role ventilation plays in a natural hive environment.

Bill Hesbach is a Connecticut native with a background in engineering.

He’s an Eastern Apicultural Society Certified Master Beekeeper, a graduate of the University of Montana’s master beekeeping program, and the President of the Connecticut Beekeepers Association.

Bill also operates a side bee business called Wing Dance Apiary in Cheshire, CT., which produces artisanal raw honey and other natural hive products.

Bill teaches bee biology and various beekeeping methods at meetings hosted by regional beekeeping clubs. He is an active member of the Eastern Apicultural Society, where he participates in the Master Beekeeper Certification program, and he is a regular guest speaker at regional beekeeping seminars.

His special interests in beekeeping include bee biology, flight, and the connection between local flora and bee behavior. He’s a published author, and his articles on beekeeping appear in The American Bee Journal and Bee Culture magazines.