Keeping bees in cities can benefit threatened populations

By Emily Mavrakis

On a cool October evening, Janice Garry heads into the backyard of her Gainesville home to check on her pets, of which she has more than 250,000.

She has three beehives that stand about five feet tall. The two larger ones each contain about 70,000 to 100,000 bees, while inside her slightly smaller hive there are about 30,000 to 50,000 of the threatened specimens.