Beekeeping in Alaska and Utah

Beekeeping in Alaska and Utah are a bit different from each other in several respects. The first has to do with the climate of the two regions. Alaska is a cold, wet, and moist place, with wind and water circulating in from the Northern Pacific. Utah, being situated in both the Great Basin and the Desert Southwest of North America is a very dry and arid place. This has created a wide divergence in flowers, threats to bees, and beekeeping techniques. The higher wildlife density in Alaska, a near perfect inverse of Utah’s burgeoning population density, leads to differing techniques. Beekeepers in Alaska paint their beehives darker colors so that they can get more sunlight and warmth into their hives. (M. Bolan, 2021) Beekeepers in Utah paint their beehives lighter and whiter colors so that they reflect sunlight and keep their beehives cooler in the hot desert sun. (M. Bolan, 2021)

Independent hobbyist beekeepers and commercial beekeepers in Alaska both have to keep rafting straps around their beehives so that if a bear comes and knocks down the hives, the hive stays together. (M. Bolan, 2021) This delays the bear’s ability to advance to the honeycomb he or she seeks. It also gives time for the beekeeper to get out there and scare the bear off from the beehive. (M. Bolan, 2021) No equivalent predator lives in Utah or the Intermountain West. (Cache Valley Beekeeper's Association, 2021)

Commercial beekeepers in Alaska must overwinter their bees in heated shipping containers in order to make money. (M. Bolan, 2021) This is due to the cost of shipping bees to Alaska. (M. Bolan, 2021) A special plane is chartered with Alaskan Airlines every year to bring bees, with about $200 per package of bees with a queen. (Southcentral Alaskan Beekeepers Association, n.d.)  Commercial beekeepers in Utah have more sun, and far less natural predators. They also have more work. Beekeepers spend their summers in Utah, working on the local flowers, orchards, and other agricultural produce. (Cox Honey, 2021) In the fall and winter, they spend their time pollinating the fresh produce of California such as almonds, watermelons, and wheat. (Cox Honey, 2021) Students cannot work these jobs because they are full time jobs, and they require travel to California, when most classes at USU are requiring face to face, in person attendance. (Cox Honey, 2021)

Alaskan beekeepers have far less agriculture to pollinate, if any at all, especially when most agriculture is restricted to two valleys, the Matanuska-Susitna, and the Tanana Valley near Fairbanks. This limits commercial growth, and reduces most of the industry to being hobbyists.

This matters because understanding the limits of the beekeeping industry and our farming in Alaska allows us to understand how critical farming is to our food ecosystem. It also matters because sometimes understanding environmental effects on bees can help us understand bee diversity, how to solve bee issues--which undergirds so many of our agricultural issues in a changing climate. Getting to see my roommate Lincoln learn how honey is produced in a personal way through being stung taught him a lot about bees. (L. Bolan, 2021) I think visceral experiences are the way forward for those of us in the artificialness of the digital age.

References

Bolan, L. (2021 7). Hands, Feet, and Beekeeping. Hands, Feet, and Beekeeping. https://barbedwirebuzz.blogspot.com/2021/07/hands-feet-and-beekeeping.html

Bolan, M. (2021, July 15). Beekeeping in Alaska vs. Utah (L. Bolan, Interviewer) [Interview]. In Phone Call.

Cache Valley Beekeeper's Association. (2021, July 22). Interview with the Head of Cache Valley Beekeeper’s Association (L. Bolan, Interviewer) [Interview]. In In Person.

Interview about Beekeeping in Utah. Live. In the beehive.

Cox Honey. (2021, August 9). Beekeeper Jobs, Employment | Indeed.com. Www.indeed.com. https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=beekeeper&l=Logan%2C%20UT&vjk=63c53bc43773defb

Goulson, D. (2012, October 2). Decline of bees forces China’s apple farmers to pollinate by hand. China Dialogue. https://chinadialogue.net/en/food/5193-decline-of-bees-forces-china-s-apple-farmers-to-pollinate-by-hand/

https://www.howstuffworks.com/about-dave-roos.htm. (2018, September 17). How Beekeeping Works. HowStuffWorks. https://animals.howstuffworks.com/insects/beekeeping1.htm

Southcentral Alaskan Beekeepers Association. (n.d.). SABA New Beekeeper Info. Sababeekeepers.com. Retrieved August 11, 2021, from http://sababeekeepers.com/NewBeekeeperInfo.html

WildAware UTah. (n.d.). Wild Aware Utah | Bears. Wild Aware Utah. Retrieved August 11, 2021, from https://www.wildawareutah.org/wildlife/bears/