apiary

Beekeepers also had an option to submit their apiary coordinates, which allowed the researchers to precisely calculate the habitat quality of the landscape surrounding each beekeeper's hives -- including the availability of floral resources in the spring, summer and fall -- and to obtain information on the weather conditions that the bees experienced over the previous year.

"We are so fortunate to be able to work with the Pennsylvania beekeepers, who every year answer a survey on their management practices, their bees' winter survival and their apiary locations," Grozinger said.

Gray said she hopes the findings will be useful to beekeepers while planning their apiary management strategies, as well as be a springboard for future studies.

Visit a local apiary or beekeeper to see how bees live and work.

But contributing to the waste stream doesn’t sit well with the Apiary team.