The Honey Bee Initiative — Smart hive

Bees are an important part of our echo system. Pollinators, such as bees, help at least 30% of the worlds crops and 90% of the worlds wild plans to thrive via cross-pollination. Studies show that between 2015 and 2016 beekeepers lost 44% of bee colonies over the winter, this is up about 10% from the previous decade. Causes for this decline is correlated to the overall hive health. The healthier the hive the more likely it is to survive the winter. Current technology dictates humans check the hives for Varroa Mite infestations, poor moisture levels, and other telling signs of an unhealthy hive. These checks are invasive to the bee colonies and only happen once or twice a year. This projects aims to create a “Smart Hive” that can be monitored from the cloud that will have high resolution (spacial and temporal) data recorded from a variety of sensors to assist beekeepers in keeping their hives healthy. The “Smart Hive” will be added to the George Mason Universities' Honey Bee Initiative's collection of hives. Realtime “Smart Hive” data will be made available to the public, and all systems developed will be made opensource.