Ongoing project
Best practices for evaluation of bee health technology (PH22003)
Delivery Partner: Macquarie University
This investment is evaluating a range of sensor-based tools for bee health monitoring so that recommendations can be made to beekeepers on available options to improve awareness of their hive health.
Evaluating the health of bee colonies is crucial to predict pollination efficiency and prevent colony losses. Traditional methods beekeepers rely on are highly labour-intensive and demand opening hives and disturbing the bees.
A range of sensor-based tools have come onto the market promising different types of data on bee hives, such as weight and internal temperature. These tools need to be tested to understand the quality of the data they collect and what the data can show about hive health.
The research team will:
Download a decision tree here to help you decide when you need hive sensors and which ones to use.
Read an article on What Australian beekeepers can expect of hive sensors here.
This project is funded through Hort Innovation's Frontiers program
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