By Julie McConnell, UF/IFAS Extension Bay County

May 20th was World Bee Day celebrating the roles of bees and other pollinators internationally. European honey bees always seem to be in the spotlight, but did you know there are over 300 bee species found in Florida? There is a great variety of size, shape, color, and behavior among these insects, and most are fantastic pollinators of fruits, nuts, vegetables, and wildflowers but are often overlooked.

Native Florida bees are broken down into nine broad categories; sweat bees, leafcutter bees, mason bees, bumble bees, carpenter bees, long-horned bees, mining bees, plasterer bees, and cuckoo bees. I certainly cannot cover all of them in this article but would like to introduce you to a couple and hopefully pique your interest beyond the famous honey bee!
Mining bees make their nests in the ground which are many times mistaken for burrows of pest species. This solitary yet gregarious bee will build a tunnel in bare ground to create a nest. The tunnel is lined with an excretion from the female which makes it waterproof. She collects pollen and nectar which is deposited in the chamber to sustain the larva that will hatch from the single egg laid inside. The larva will go through four instars before entering a prepupa then pupal stage before emerging as an adult the following spring nine months later. There is no social structure with communal brood rearing in this solitary bee life cycle, however, it is common to find nesting sites from multiple females grouped together which is why they are described as gregarious. Miner bees are generalist flower visitors which provides pollination services for many plants including milkweed, persimmon, blackberry, rose, tomatoes, and clover to name a few.

Another interesting type of solitary bee is the leaf cutting bee. As the name implies, theses bees cut out pieces of leaves from plants that are used to create nests. The leaf is rolled up like a cigar and used to line cavities the bee finds and uses to house her young. Examples of cavities used by leaf cutter bees are holes in rotting wood, hollow plant stems, man-made nesting sites, or holes previously used by other insects. The female creates multiple chambers or cells in a nest, but each one holds only one egg. She provisions each cell with a loaf of pollen and nectar for the larva. Leaf cutter bees emerge in the spring after overwintering as a young adult bee. There are over 25 species of leaf cutter bees in Florida that pollinate many crops including wildflowers, fruits, vegetables, and alfalfa.

To see more photos like these from UF, and learn about more Florida bees please visit Bees of Florida https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/IN/IN128500.pdf and UF/IFAS Featured Creatures http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures.

An Equal Opportunity institution, Extension Service, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences. Participation shall not be denied on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, marital or family status, or political beliefs.

By Marta Rose-Thorpe

Gary Michaels moved to Panama City Beach from Lexington, Kentucky in 2020. Central Kentucky, where he lived, is one of the most beautiful places in the world, he feels. “It’s a black hole… there’s something about the feel, the people, the surroundings – it will definitely suck you in. I love Kentucky!”

For years he had been coming to the Thunder Beach Bike Rally, which he loves, and his daughter and grandkids were here. “I wanted to move to a tourist town where I could perform every night,” he recalls of the urge to move south. “I’ve always loved Panama City. I first came to PCB in the late nineties. I had lived in Miami for exactly one year, and it was bizarre! It was hot, but no place for a country boy. I worked at three radio stations and did two comedy shows twice a week – and sang in two bands.”

After that Gary had to move north to get back to the south. He left Miami for Dothan, AL where he lived for two years, and sang in a band “that we just threw together,” while still coming down to PCB during Thunder Beach. He finally left Dothan to go back home to Lexington, and that is when he met April.

“At Bike Week a few years ago, I met a group of girls,” his story goes. “I went to Georgia to visit one of them. That night I met April (who hails from Covington, Georgia, 40 miles east of Atlanta) and I hypnotized her… and the next night. We became friends and all hung out.” She was seeing someone at the time, but eventually the other relationships didn’t work out, and the two finally ended up together. “April is by far the best partner and friend that you could ever hope for,” says Gary. “I was married once, 32 years ago, and I thought I’d never get married again.” The two have plans to tie the knot soon.

Gary’s been in show business for most of his life, with a long resume of talents and skills. “Anything in the entertainment world that you can think of, I’ve probably done it,” he offers. From his commercial voice-over artist work he is one of the most recognized voices in the nation, as well as an accomplished magician, comedian, narrator, radio and TV personality, actor, master of ceremonies, and he’s also sung in rock and southern rock bands and a country band called “Saddletramp.”

So how does one begin one’s career as a Biker Comedy Hypnotist? I wonder aloud. “I’ve suffered from depression for many years,” he shares. “People would ask, how did you get through it? It got to the point where I couldn’t afford to keep seeing my doctor – but I needed help; I needed medication. I decided I wanted to figure out a way to deal with the depression without medication, and I found hypnosis. I would go on YouTube and watch lectures on hypnotism. I would research it for hours. In my research I came across some comedy hypnosis and thought, I can do this!

“I started mixing comedy and acting with hypnotism – and then I started practicing. Next thing you know I’m starting to hypnotize people. I used it for myself to deal with my depression but found a way to incorporate it into a stage act with magic. It just morphed and evolved from there – and it keeps evolving.”

Gary then explained some interesting fun facts to me on hypnotism. “On one end of the bell curve, there is 2.14 percent of the population that can never be hypnotized. 68 percent of the population is ‘average subjects.’ Five to ten percent are above-average subjects. And 2.14 percent of people are Somnambulistic – the BEST hypnotic subjects. They have an incredible ability to focus; these people go very fast and deep into hypnosis.”

Hypnosis can happen immediately, he shares, and voice has a lot to do with it. Hypnosis is a common state of mind; we are all in a hypnotic state of mind 70% of the day. No one, he says, will ever do something under hypnosis that goes against their morals, values, and beliefs. Everyone has a different type of personality.

So, what’s up next for this multi-talented entertainer? “Maybe doing several shows on the Good ‘Ol Boys Cruise in 2023 – you never know! I enjoy making people laugh. If I can do something that makes you laugh and makes you remember the fun, then I’ve accomplished what I want to accomplish. You can do the same bit every night, but each person is going to have a different response, because each person is different.”

To book Gary Michaels for your next corporate event, cruise ship act, casino act, bike rally, or private party, visit him online at GaryMichaels.net.

Island Air Express is excited to announce a unique opportunity for young students this summer. The flight school will offer an introduction to the world of aviation through the Flight School Association of America’s AeroCamp. Students ages 11-18 are invited to participate in the program which will run from June 7-11.

Campers will be familiarized with all things aviation before taking to the skies for in-flight training. Students who prefer to stay on the ground can do so and will cover several aspects of flight including instruction on radio communications, airport traffic patterns, and the basics of aeronautical charts. Campers will be taught by professional certified flight instructors with years of experience in the business.

This program is ideal for anyone interested in a career in aviation, a field that offers very diverse opportunities and professional paths. The price of the camp is $695 and will include flight time, a camp t-shirt, and breakfast.

Island Air Express is located at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport and has been training student pilots since 1994. The school was founded by the late Morris Jarmon Sr., who was decorated with the purple heart for his bravery in the Vietnam War.

For more information on the program, visit islandairexpress.com or call (850) 814-6407.

Nearly 1 in 10 Americans age 12 or older struggle with substance abuse, involving alcohol or illicit drugs according to the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration. When you look at the great work being done by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, it’s unfortunately not difficult to wrap your mind around that statistic. Addiction is a bondage that destroys lives, families, and communities and we are working daily to make a difference in the lives of women across the Florida panhandle.

Humble House Ministries Inc. was established in September 2020, and the need continues to grow. The first phase of our ministry has been providing a Transitional Housing Program that is based on the Word of God, free of charge to those without the ability to pay. Our six available beds are all full. We currently have a waiting list of eight women and sadly, we have had to turn away more than 20 women. These are numbers that continue to grow as our court systems restart after COVID.

“It has been a joy to see what God has done through our community supporters this past 6 months, in addition to the residents’ lives,” says Rachel Duvall, Founder & CEO. “We want each house to be a home for our ladies. We make sure they find a meaningful job, establish life skills, and a solid foundation in Jesus Christ so that when they leave, they just need to move their body and belongings.”

Resident Casey says, “Humble House, to me, is a place of new beginnings. I was nameless, broken, addicted, and alone. Since I have been here, I finally feel like I belong. I am very thankful to God.”

So, here’s the new news. We are opening our second Transitional House in May, which will double the occupancy capabilities, allowing us to include women and their children. We are inviting all community groups, individuals, and community members to help support #womenhelpingwomen in northwest Florida. Registry for the home’s needs list can be found here: Target Gift Registry > Organization Name > Humble House.

For more information visit humblehouseministries.org or call (850) 628-1021.