Dr. Samuel Ramsey: The Honey Bee Fat Body and the Varroa Mite - (015)

Dr. Samuel Ramsey is a life long entomologist. His interests in all things insects started in his youth along with his parent's encouragement and his siblings displeasure! He continued his studies in college (Cornell) and just recently completed his PhD this year at The University of Maryland under Dr. Dennis vanEngelsdorp.

Dr. Ramsey made headlines earlier this year with the publication of his doctoral research on the feeding behaviors of the varroa destructor mite on the honey bee. In this episode of the podcast, we discuss with Dr. Ramsey why he studied what was thought to be a closed subject and proved that the varroa was not feeding primarily on the bee's blood, but rather a liver-like organ called the 'Fat Body'. 

This is a fascinating discussion that all beekeepers should listen to. There are many interesting facts, that run counter to popular press and education.

Following are the links mentioned in this podcast:

• 3-Minute YouTube Video on the Varroa Mite findings: https://youtu.be/Fyfyj-2O47Q
• GoFundMe site for Dr. Ramsey's new research on the Tropilaelaps mite in Asia: https://www.gofundme.com/fundhoneybeeresearch
• (Newly added) Sr. Ramsey's ground breaking research on the varroa, published in January, 2019: https://www.pnas.org/content/116/5/1792
• For fun and diverse thinking, Dr. Ramsey's 'jazzy' departure from American Idol: https://youtu.be/UWwuxlkm7_4

Kim wraps up the show with his InnerCovered.

This is a fun and enlightening conversation with Dr. Ramsey. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did making it.

This episode is brought to you by Wicwas Press. Wicwas Press is the publisher of beekeeping how-to and scientific books. We thank Wicwas for their support of our podcast.

We welcome your questions and comments: [email protected]

Thanks to Bee Culture, the Magazine of American Beekeeping, for their support of The Beekeeping Today Podcast. Available in print and digital at www.beeculture.com

 Thank you for listening! 

Podcast music: Young Presidents, "Be Strong"