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Author Topic: Bees and Mankind, by John B. Free  (Read 3229 times)

Offline Lone

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Bees and Mankind, by John B. Free
« on: December 03, 2013, 12:10:37 am »
Hello,

I've just finished reading this remarkable book, out of print now and originally published early 1980's.  It is by an English author and apparently a few copies made their way to Australia when he was over on a trip here.  There are two sections of the book, the first detailing the life cycle of a few specific species, such as some types of bumble bee and stingless bee, as well as attributes of some of the Apis species.  The second section deals with mankind's interactions with bees in many different ages and cultures.  The author also deals with good practices in using A. mellifera in pollination etc, and 30 years later it seems some of his predictions have come to pass.  Every chapter starts with a bee quote or poetry which is lovely.  He tells some interesting and funny anecdotes and explains misconceptions about bees in some past centuries. There are nice photos and diagrams also.  He does make wild assumptions about evolution, which I never like in books, considering most people have forgotten it is a theory only.  However, I can skip those things and really I enjoyed the experience of Bees and Mankind so much I read it slowly so that it wouldn't be over and done with too soon!

Lone

 

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