Dick Rogers has been keeping and studying honey bees since 1973, and he has been a professional Entomologist for close to 45 years. He received his BSc from Acadia University, Nova Scotia, and his MSc from McGill University, Montreal, Quebec. During his career he has had many entomology related positions including consulting entomologist, contract researcher, beekeeper, extension entomologist, apiculturist, adjunct professor, and other university appointments. Dick started with Bayer in 2009 as a Principal Scientist/Entomologist in Ecotoxicology. In 2012 he started and managed the Bee Health and Integrated Apiculture Research Program of the former Bayer Bee Care Center-NA, in Research Triangle Park, NC. He is both an internal and external resource and educator on bees, apiculture, biodiversity, and sustainability. His research seeks to identify, develop, and evaluate tools and processes to improve management of honey bee colonies. He is a practitioner and advocate for advancing technology for precision apiculture. His office was moved to St. Louis, MO in 2019, but he is currently working from home in Chapel Hill, NC. He has been a member of many committees and professional organizations. Two notable groups he is currently a member of include the Apimondia Bee Data Standards Working Group, and the NAPPC Climate-Change and Pollinators Task Force.

Talk outline/description:

Dick will highlight the three questions a beekeeper needs to answer at each hive inspection. He will also discuss a practical system that can be used to speed up inspections and minimize recordkeeping. As apiculture moves into the digital age, there are some tools that can help beekeepers improve management. However, there are some important things that need to be considered to facilitate the transition. Also, it is important to share data so it can benefit others. Data sharing with be discussed as well.

Outline:

1. A simple recordkeeping system that helps answer simple questions during hive inspections (The Healthy Colony Checklist)
2. Digital tools and Iot (The HCC form app and db; connected hive scales and other sensors; importance of connectivity to minimize data gaps)
3. Data sharing and Analytics (Standardization of methods and data; sharing data locally and analytics for bee clubs; sharing data globally and analytics for research)