Recently, Dr. Frank Bosmans has begun the application process on a MacArthur Foundation grant, in which he hopes to get funding based on his research into finding a planet-friendly solution to the Varroa Mite problem, which is killing honey bees at an alarming rate.
Dr. Bosmans says, “The earth’s honeybees are dying. Endangered along with them is the mechanism for pollinating 1/3 of the crops that feed the world. Should anything even approaching extinction occur, global food shortages are a certainty. Several factors account for the deaths. However, there is virtual scientific community agreement that Varroa, a pathogenic mite family threatening honeybee populations worldwide, is the principal cause. Chemical pesticides are all failing. We propose a new approach – to exploit our knowledge of natural toxins from venomous animals and our unique and documented successes in targeting and destroying a single species of insect to develop Varroa-specific, planet-safe insecticides.”
To see a short video outlining his research, click here.