About 100 people buzzed over a bee speaker Monday night.
Jamie Ellis, an endowed associate professor at UF and a honey bee expert, spoke to a crowd as they dined family-style at Blue Gill Quality Foods.
He worked through a presentation titled “Plight of the Honey Bee” and answered audience questions about everything honey-bee related.
At the age of 12, Ellis started keeping bees as a hobby.
“It’s not because my family did it,” he said. “It’s because I was a weird kid.”
The speaker joked and interacted with his audience, asking questions and breaking the science down to relatable metaphors.
He discussed the importance of honey bees and what is causing them to die, such as pesticides and parasites.
“About 20 percent of the world’s food production is dependent on honey bees,” he said.
Ellis also touched on the lifespan and sex life of honey bees.
“Queen honey bees are egg-laying machine guns,” he said.
Monday evening’s talk was the last of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s Spring 2016 Science Cafes, said Betty Dunckel, the program director at the museum’s Center for Science Learning.
She said the events are meant to bring science to the community and business to locally owned Gainesville restaurants.
Dunckel said she stands by the door at every event and thanks guests as they leave.
“We have a lot of regulars who come every time and only miss if they are out of town,” she said. “Each program also draws new people in.”
Kathleen Hayman, a retired health care communicator, said she has attended the event for years and has not missed a session this Spring.
“It’s great fun,” she said.
Hayman said her interest in science grows with each dinner, where she always learns something new.
Ellis, she said, was the best speaker she’s heard yet.
“I’m inspired to put honey in my tea now,” she said.
