This past weekend the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture attended the Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association Annual General Meeting and banquet in Debert, NS. The event was well attended with nearly 100 people in attendance, including a variety of presenters and tradeshow participants from across North America. For a summary of the NSBA banquet and annual general meeting read this week’s blog.

Review: Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association Annual General Meeting 2026

On Friday January 23^rd the Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association (NSBA) hosted an annual commercial beekeeper meeting in Debert, NS. During the commercial meeting, Janette MacDonald (Executive Director of the Nova Scotia Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association of Nova Scotia – WBPANS) gave an update on the Nova Scotia wild blueberry industry. In particular, Janette discussed the various impacts the 2025 drought conditions had on the crop, where across the province there was a 32% reduction in harvestable crop (based on the province’s 5-year average). It is still unknown the impact that these conditions had on sprout year fields and what this will mean for the 2026 wild blueberry crop.

Rodd Scarlett (Canadian Honey Council) discussed honey bee stocking issues. Stocking issues are directly correlated to colony winter loss and last year Canada had an above average winter loss at 39.3%. Comparatively, Nova Scotia faired well last winter with an average colony loss of 18.3%. Rodd also discussed imports of both packages and queens to Canada, which although needed to meet honey bee stocking requirements currently, it does present various biosecurity risks to the Canadian industry.

Dr. Dan Aurell (Auburn University) gave an informative presentation on the use of oxalic acid. Dan highlighted the fact that a beneficial time for beekeepers to be using any oxalic acid formulations (dribble, vapour or strips) is following a brood break. Following a brood break (ex. queenless spit) there will be a period of time when there is a low amount of brood present, and, therefore, the majority of Varroa mites will be present on adult bees and targeted by treatment. Dan also discussed the various oxalic acid treatments available including VarroxSan^TM (see previous ATTTA blog “New Varroa Mite Treatment Product: VarroxSan^TM” published on November 13, 2026). Another interesting topic that Dan discussed was the potential use of adjuvant to enhance the effectiveness of miticides by improving coverage, penetration and adhesion of various products.

During the evening of the 23^rd, the NSBA held their annual banquet. During the banquet the founders of Fireside Meadery (Connor and Maria Jeffreys) gave a presentation on the process of making mead and introduced the audience to their newly established Meadery (est. 2022) which is located Musquodoboit Harbour, NS.

Shelly Hoover (University of Lethbridge) gave an informative talk on the various impacts of climate change on honey bees and the availability of forage for bees during environmental stressors. Shelly highlighted the many impacts that drought conditions can have on the health of honey bees which was timely given the extreme drought conditions experienced across Nova Scotia during the 2025 beekeeping season.

To conclude the banquet, Dr. Andrew Byers presented the “Practical Beekeeping and Industry Engagement Award” to Heather Sherwood and Patricia Pittman both of whom are involved in the Nova Scotia beekeeping industry.

Heather Sherwood receiving the Practical Beekeeping and Industry Engagement Award from Dr. Andrew Byers.

Patricia Pittman receiving the Practical Beekeeping and Industry Engagement Award from Dr. Andrew Byers.

To start the annual general meeting on January 24^th, the NSBA held their annual business meeting. The president of the board, Lori Kittilsen, gave an update of the various activities of the NSBA during the past year. To highlight a few activities of the association, in 2025 the NSBA had a spring workshop , did a series of integrated pest management workshops across the province during the fall, participated in the Climate Adaptation Leadership Program, and developed a new logo and website.

Lori Kittilsen, president of the Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association, providing an update during the 2026 annual general meeting.

Alicia King (Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture) gave an update on behalf of the federation. Alicia discussed the goals of the federation and also provided a summary of the various programs offered through the NSFA, all of which can be found on their website: https://nsfa-fane.ca/.

Sawyer Olmstead, provincial apiculturist, provided an overview of the Nova Scotia honey bee industry. In 2025 there was 968 beekeepers registered in Nova Scotia, and during the summer months these beekeepers managed a total of 30,203 colonies with an estimated 28,201 colonies going into winter. The number of colonies being managed in Nova Scotia has grown over the past 5 years with substantial growth seen in Annapolis and Kings Counties. In 2025 there was 11,500 colonies for honey production which produced an average of 38.1 lbs. per hive across the province. However, there was considerable variation in honey production for various regions of the province depending on local drought conditions. Wild blueberry pollination was achieved by 70 Nova Scotia beekeepers sending a total of 19,009 colonies to fields. Additionally, during a pilot program for the province, an additional 864 colonies were allowed into the province during the wild blueberry pollination period.

Sawyer Olmstead, Nova Scotia provincial apiculturist, providing an industry update at the 2026 annual general meeting.

Dr. Dan Aurell (Auburn University) gave a second talk on Tropilaelaps mites, which are a risk to the North American beekeeping industry. A couple of the challenges associated with Tropilaelaps mites when compared to Varroa mites, are that Tropilaelaps mites are smaller and harder to detect (1/3 the size of Varroa mites) and Tropilaelaps mites reproduce faster than Varroa mites allowing them to quickly grow their population. Overall, Tropilaelaps mites are significantly under studied compared to Varroa mites. However, some research is suggesting that Tropilaelaps mites do not survive very long on adult bees, and when brood is not present in a colony their population may be reduced. In Canada, very little brood persists throughout the winter months which may be an advantage to keeping Tropilaelaps mites at lower levels if the pest were to be introduced to the Canadian beekeeping industry. When monitoring for Tropilaelaps mites the “bump method” of knocking brood out of a frame, and sifting through the larvae, is currently the most effective yet accurate monitoring method available to beekeepers. For treatment, one product currently being researched is formic acid, but more studies are required to determine its efficacy.

Rodd Scarlett (Canadian Honey Council) provided a second presentation on honey adulteration. The Canadian Honey Council actively works with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to prevent fraudulent honey from being sold on the Canadian market.

Shelly Hoover (University of Lethbridge) gave a second talk on imported versus local queens. Shelly explained how transporting queens significant distances can impact the viability of queens. For example, sperm stored within the queen’s spermatheca is sensitive to temperature and has decreased viability at temperatures too hot or too cold, which are often experienced during transport. In addition to the risks of queens being damaged during transport, the costs of imported queens have increased not in proportion to inflation rates. Local queens are not always available early in the beekeeping season, and, therefore, there is still a need for imported queen within the Canadian beekeeping industry. However, when possible, there are multiple benefits for beekeepers purchasing local queens.

Pascale Michaud (Agrogene Solutions) discussed the results of the various testing being offered by the Agrogene Solutions lab. Pascale provided insight to the various honey bee pathogens that are detected within the region’s colonies including viruses, bacteria, mites and fungi. To learn more about the various testing offered by Agrogene Solutions visit their website: https://www.agrogenesolutions.com/.

To conclude the meeting there was a panel discussion consisting of Rodd Scarlett (Canadian Honey Council), Dr. Dan Aurell (Auburn University), Pascale Michaud (Agrogene Solutions) and Shelly Hoover (University of Lethbridge). The panel discussed various important topics to the Nova Scotia beekeeping industry such as beekeeping cost of production challenges, Varroa mite management and treatments, considerations for splitting colonies, and honey bee health testing. Thank you to all of the panelists.

Thank you to all of the organizers of this year’s annual general meeting, and to all of the presenters for their knowledge and expertise they bring to the beekeeping industry.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

To maintain productive and healthy colonies it is important that beekeepers consider the quality of their queens. The presence of a healthy and productive queen is essential for colony survival both because of the offspring she produces and the presence of her pheromones which facilitates colony behaviour. Read this week’s blog to learn about indicators of good and poor queen quality and recommendations for when queens should be replaced within an operation.

Queen Quality

Good quality queens are essential for strong and healthy colonies that successfully overwinter. She is the sole reproductive female of the hive, builds the colony population and provides essential pheromones that facilitate social coherence of a colony. Each year in the Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists (CAPA) colony winter loss survey “poor queens” is continually reported by beekeepers as a top reason for colony winter loss¹.

Queen quality can be diminished due to a variety of factors such as age, mating success, injury, the presence of pests and/or diseases, and miticide exposure². Generally, queens live one to three years^2,3, however, she is most productive laying eggs when she is less than 2 years old². Compared to other insects, a honey bee queen has a relatively long life². As a queen ages so does the likelihood of a supersedure event occurring or the queen dying^2,3. To avoid an interruption in brood production, or having a queenless colony late in the beekeeping season, best practice is to requeen colonies every two to three beekeeping seasons³. Additionally, anytime a queen’s performance is questionable beekeepers should monitor her performance and consider requeening². If a beekeeper is choosing to replace queens after a particular number of beekeeping seasons, it is recommended that beekeepers mark their queens to be certain of her age.

There are several indicators that a queen is of good quality and performing well within a colony. One indication the queen is performing well is the overall brood pattern. Ideally, the brood should be located at the center of the hive, and, on a single frame, food resources should form an arch over the brood⁴. Additionally, beekeepers should check if the brood pattern is solid (not “spotty”), as a  spotty brood pattern may indicate a poor performing queen, and may also be a sign of various brood diseases². Low bee populations can be attributed to a failing queen². One way to assess a bee population is both honey production and consumption, both of which should be high with a strong colony population². Beekeepers should be assessing for how well the queen is mated. If there is an abnormally high percentage of drones and drone brood compared to workers this may indicate that the queen is not well mated and is only laying drones⁵. Colonies that are prone to pests and diseases, in particular high varroa mite loads, may have a queen with poor genetics. Beekeepers should also recognize that overtime miticide exposure can impact the health of the queen and also the viability of sperm stored in her spermatheca². Excessive debris on the bottom board can be a sign the queen has genetics associated with poor hygienic behaviour. Finally, observe and keep records of colony behaviour. When a queen is aging and/or failing, her pheromone production drops, leading to noticeable changes in colony behavior, such as an overly defensive colony, and the presence of supersedure cells if the colony has decided to requeen².

A

B

Comparison of brood patterns: (A) Good arching, solid, brood pattern (©ATTTA 2024); (B) Spotty brood pattern (©David Evans 2018)

Worker bees forming a retinue around queen honey bee (ATTTA^© 2025), which is facilitated by the queen’s retinue pheromone.

The age of the queen has a direct impact on the colony winter survivability. A 2007 study conducted in Turkey found that colonies with first year queens had a 100% survivability rate, colonies with 1-year-old queens had a 100% survivability rate, colonies with 2-year-old queens had a 60% survivability rate, and colonies with 3-year-old queens had a 40% survivability rate (N = 5)⁶. The research also found that there is a correlation between queen age and honey production, brood production and population of adult bees, where colonies with older queens (2-3 years old) had less honey production and brood production and a smaller population of adult bees compared to young queens (less than 2 years old)⁶.

Globally, in addition to parasites and pathogens, failure or loss of queens has been considered one of the most important factors leading to colony losses⁷. Beekeepers should remain vigilant monitoring the performance of their queens and intervene when required. Overall, having healthy, productive queens with desirable genetics provides the greatest opportunity for colonies to build up throughout the beekeeping season and successfully overwinter. For any questions regarding queen quality and colony performance please contact a member of the ATTTA team.

References

1. Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturist. 2025. Statement on honey bee wintering losses and disease management in Canada for 2025.
2. Sammataro, D., and Avitabile, A. 2021. A beekeeper’s handbook: fifth edition. Cornell University Press .
3. Lee, K.V., Goblirsch, M., McDermott, E., Tarpy, D.R. and Spivak, M., 2019. Is the brood pattern within a honey bee colony a reliable indicator of queen quality?. Insects, 10(1), p.12.
4. Camazine, S., 1991. Self-organizing pattern formation on the combs of honey bee colonies. Behavioral ecology and sociobiology, 28, pp.61-76.
5. Pernal, S. F., and Clay, H., 2013. Honey bee diseases and pests, 3rd Edition. Canadian Association Professional Apiarists, Beaverlodge, AB, Canada 68 pp.
6. Akyol, E., Yeninar, H., Korkmaz, A. and Çakmak, I., 2008. An observation study on the effects of queen age on some characteristics of honey bee colonies. Italian Journal of Animal Science, 7(1), pp.19-25.
7. Amiri, E., Strand, M.K., Rueppell, O. and Tarpy, D.R., 2017. Queen quality and the impact of honey bee diseases on queen health: potential for interactions between two major threats to colony health. Insects, 8(2), p.48.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca