Honeybee Blues

Synopsis

Honeybee Blues tells the story of the world’s disappearing honeybees and the efforts of Australian scientist Dr Denis
 Anderson to save them from annihilation. From the native bush of Australia to the industrial farmlands of the United States and the highlands of Papua New Guinea, Honeybee Blues is a scientific detective story that tells a 21st century cautionary tale.

The European honeybee, or Apis mellifera, is under threat from all directions. Industrial agriculture and habitat destruction have taken their toll but the biggest threat is a deadly parasitic mite that Anderson discovered and called Varroa destructor. It has decimated bee populations everywhere except Australia, which is now the only country that has European honeybees living in the wild.

The film features observational sequences and interviews with biosecurity officers, bee exporters, pollinators and honey producers. Combining macro photography, a lively blues soundtrack and animation sequences, Honeybee Blues tracks the incredible journey of the world’s oldest domesticated animal and its predators around the globe.