Australian Native Bee Association Inc. upcoming events

Rockhampton branch Hive Transfer Workshop (19 Sep 2026)

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 22:00:00 GMT

Cassowary Coast September meeting (20 Sep 2026)

Sun, 20 Sep 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Our next meeting will hosted by David at his place at Wongaling Beach.

We will seek to elect a Chairperson as the position was unfilled at the AGM.

Please contact the branch secretary if you wish to discuss the role.

If you are interested in nominating and have been a financial member for the last 2 years please complete the attached nomination form and return it or bring it to the meeting

Agenda:

Election of branch Chairperson

ANBA Conference reflection

Honey extraction and tasting

T hockingsi hive split

T sapien eduction progress evaluation

Date : Sunday 20nd September

Time: 2pm

Location: 3 Mission Circle, Wongaling Beach

Monthly event ft Genevieve Law (20 Sep 2026)

Sun, 20 Sep 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Monthly event of the Australian Native Bee Association

20^th September 2 – 3 pm

All are welcome to attend in person at Bulimba Community Centre, 1 Barramul St, Bulimba, Brisbane. Free for members, $5 for non-members.

ANBA members can also attend online, a link to join will be sent by email approximately 1-2 days prior to the event.

AGM of the Brisbane Branch, plus a seminar: Genetic insights into Australia's stingless bees by Genevieve Law

At the Brisbane branch AGM (Annual General Meeting), we will report on our year and elect our new Branch committee. We have not received any written nominations for the positions of Secretary and Treasurer so will accept nominations from the floor. (Note that the National ANBA will also be hosted by the Brisbane branch at our next (October) meeting.)

Genetic insights into Australia's stingless bees

By Genevieve Law, University of Sydney

In Australia, there is increasing interest in stingless bees, including in agricultural pollination, ecological pollination, and meliponiculture. However, many aspects of the diversity and distribution of Australia’s stingless bees remain poorly known. My PhD aims to characterise the distinctiveness of Australian stingless bees (Austroplebeia and Tetragonula) at a population and species level. In other words, why do we have the species and populations of stingless bees that we have in Australia today, and what evolutionary pathways are they travelling on? In my talk, I will focus on two areas of my research: firstly, I’ll discuss genetic work that I conducted for my Honours and PhD projects on the widely kept stingless bee species Tetragonula hockingsi. T. hockingsi can be broken into three distinct populations (Cape York, Northern Queensland, and Southern Queensland), and these populations are quite genetically distinct. We also investigated to what extent these populations hybridise, both in a natural region in central Queensland where the Northern and Southern populations meet, and in Brisbane, where beekeeping has led there to be multiple populations present there. Understanding where the populations of T. hockingsi are on the pathway to becoming different species is vital for appropriate management of both natural and managed populations. I’ll also talk about our work on characterising the distinctiveness of the Austroplebeia species and populations at a genetic level. Previous work on Austroplebeia has mainly focussed on morphology, but here we use genetic to gain a better understanding into the divergence between the Austroplebeia species. We focussed on A. australis, the most widespread of the Austroplebeia (it spans four Australian states and territories!). A. australis also has a number of distinctive colour morphs, including the striking orange abdomens seen in some populations in Queensland. In summary, our Australian stingless bees have many fascinating stories to tell, and in my talk I’ll be sharing some of the stories that genetics has revealed.

Genevieve Law is a PhD student in the BEE lab at the University of Sydney, supervised by Ros Gloag, James Hereward, and Nathan Lo. Her PhD project focuses on the Australian stingless bees (Austroplebeia and Tetragonula) and aims to characterise and explain patterns of genetic divergence between their populations. She utilises approaches including genomics and behavioural experiments to characterise how stingless bee populations and species are different, in order to understand how factors from cellular biology to landscape ecology could be driving their divergence. A greater understanding of the speciation processes in our stingless bees provided by this work will improve understanding of their ecology and evolution, as well as their management in Australia.

Coffs Harbour AGM and host hive installation (26 Sep 2026)

Sat, 26 Sep 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Please join us to install the 3rd of our hosted hives at a Petal N Vine, a seasonal and sustainable flower farm in Nana Glen. The flower farm is owned by the wonderful David and Jodi, along with their dog Popcorn. It is the perfect placement for our hive as the gardens are huge and they have many people visiting to enjoy the wide range of flowers. We will install the hive and have the opportunity to enjoy the flowers, including the new paper daisy field. You will be amazed!

Prior to the installation we will conduct our AGM. The AGM is for current financial members of the ANBA only. If you have not yet renewed your membership for FY2026/2027, please ensure that you do so before the AGM.

Please consider putting up your hand for Chairperson (Ben would like to take a break to enjoy time with his young grandchildren), Secretary or Treasurer (I would appreciate the help). They are not difficult or time consuming roles, but it will ensure that our branch continues. Sadly other branches in ANBA are folding due to lack of volunteers.

We will also be distributing the great carpenter bee homes, donated by Dr Lena Schmidt, for our members to install in their own garden. Through Lena’s own trials and research, some of these designs have already proved successful in attracting and providing homes for great carpenter bees. A huge thank you to Lena for supporting our branch and helping provide more habitat for our native bees.

We look forward to seeing you there!

For further information contact Elaine 0421 041 269 or elaine.bean77@gmail.com

General enquiries coffs.anba@gmail.com

Australian Pollinator Week Talk and Walk - Megan Halcroft (14 Nov 2026)

Sat, 14 Nov 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Get Tickets: events.humanitix.com/australian-pollinator-week-talk-and-walk

Insect pollinators are the unsung heroes of the natural world. Join Dr Megan Halcroft to learn about why these mostly-unseen creatures are the foundation of our food web. See them up close in all their beauty and share in the wonder of their diversity.

Following her talk, Megan will take participants on a walk through the gardens of Eskbank House Museum, to catch, observe and get to know these tiny but important creatures.

Megan was a late comer to the world of bees, leaving a career in nursing in 1998, to study plants and invertebrates. Her fascination with bees began during a unit in apiculture (honey bee keeping), where she was introduced to Australia’s native bees—and she was instantly hooked!

Research on the stingless bee Austroplebeia australis during her Honours and PhD studies became the catalyst for Megan’s enduring curiosity about the hundreds of often-overlooked native bee species, as well as the other beneficial insects in our environment. Today, she shares her knowledge and enthusiasm with community groups, both face to face and through social media.

Following the completion of a community-based project, called Bee Aware of Your Native Bees, Megan founded Australian Pollinator Week. Celebrated in the Southern Hemisphere’s spring, November is dedicated to learning about our unique pollinators and why they drive biodiversity.

This is a free event with light refreshments provided