HoneybeeAt the meeting of the Gila Native Plant Society on Friday, April 20, 2018, Dr. Manda Clair Jost will give a presentation entitled "Interactions between domesticated, feral, and native bees in the Southwest". As Dr. Jost explains her topic, "Old-world honeybees are here to stay. But even though there has been great concern about the status and stamina of European Apis and their africanized siblings, the effects these non-native bees have had on native bee and plant species is hotly debated and only partly understood. This presentation will review the status of domesticated, feral, and africanized Apis mellifera in New Mexico and Arizona, with special regard to the potential impacts these bees have had (and may continue to have) on our native bee and plant communities".

Dr. Manda Clair Jost has been a professor of Biology at Western New Mexico University since 2008, and teaches courses in invertebrate zoology, evolution, entomology, and other topics. Currently she is studying the evolution of host choice in parasitic spider-wasps - such as the tarantula hawk, New Mexico's official state insect. She is also a hobby beekeeper who recently taught a beekeeping workshop for the Western Institute for Lifelong Learning.

Meetings of the Gila Native Plant Society are held the third Friday of the month from September to May at 7.00 p.m. in Harlan Hall, second floor, Room 219, corner of Alabama and 12th Streets, on the Western New Mexico University campus. They are free and open to the public. Refreshments following the program.

The Gila Native Plant Society is committed to promoting education, research and appreciation of the native flora of the Southwest, encouraging the preservation of rare and endangered plant species and supporting the use of suitable native plants in landscaping. For information on programs, publications and membership, please visit www.gilanps.org.