St. Andrews campus is buzzing with excitement as Rebecca Henning (Midland High School), Jacqueline Laurin (Dow High School), and Trenton Mclean (Bay City Western High School) conduct research on a polymer-based miticide, which could help beekeepers with Varroa mite problems in hives across the United States. These interns have been investigating the effect of environmental conditions including humidity, temperature, and surface area on the degradation speed of the miticide product. Students also assisted in field research for this project. In a collaboration with Barkman Aparies, the interns helped conduct a large field trial involving over fifty bee hives. The effects of miticide treatment methods and dosage upon mite count and bee health were investigated.

Students in this project are mentored by Dr. Edmund Stark and Mrs. Allison VanDriessche assisted with the bee and miticide project.