Andony Melathopoulos

Take a Walk on the Wild Side: Oregon’s Weird and Wonderful Native Bees

Did you know Oregon has about 600 species of bees? We say “about” because, in fact, no one really knows how many bees call the state home. Oregon is the first state in the US to do a comprehensive inventory of its bees using volunteers, the Oregon Bee Atlas. This talk will describe some of the strange and weird bees that call Oregon home and the journey of discovery by the state’s volunteer Master Melittologists. And it will be recounted not by some cloistered native bee biologist, but someone who has apiculture in his veins and whose favorite bee remains the honey bee (i.e., someone like you).

Panel: Raising Queens and How They Fit into Beekeeper Operations

This panel discussion, led by moderator Andony Melathopoulos, considers how raising our own queens impacts beekeeping operations, whether you are a commercial, sideliner, or hobbyist beekeeper. Panelists will discuss  methods used and goals, what works and what doesn’t work. The audience is encouraged to ask questions of the panelists through the moderator.  

Andony Melathopoulos is an Assistant Professor of Pollinator Health Extension in the Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University. He has over 15 years of experience working together with commercial beekeepers and land managers to develop solutions for keeping bees healthy. Since 2016 he has been leading OSU’s efforts to design, implement and evaluate a state-wide pollinator health program. He is on the Coordinating Team of the state-wide bee protection initiative, the Oregon Bee Project, coordinates the Oregon Bee Atlas, and the host of a weekly podcast about pollinator health, PolliNation. He sheepishly leads OSU’s new Master Melittologist program (but only by virtue of having a crack team consisting of a native bee taxonomist, Lincoln Best, an educational coordinator (and wizard), Sarah Kincaid, and the best program coordinator in the business (Jen Larsen).