Researchers seek causes of honeybee colony collapse

[Guest guest]

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/researchers-seek-causes-honeybee-colony-collapse-201103\

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Researchers seek causes of honeybee colony collapse

By Zach | Reuters – 1 hour 17 minutes ago

SOUTH DEERFIELD, Massachusetts (Reuters) - Birds do it, fleas do it but when

bees do it, the value is $212 billion to the world economy.

That's why scientists are seeking a way to stem mass deaths of the world's

primary pollinator -- the honeybee -- which affect more than 30 percent of bee

colonies in the United States and more than 20 percent in some European

countries.

Researchers have identified some probable causes of colony collapse disorder

(CCD), including blood-feeding parasites, bee viruses, fungi, pesticide exposure

and decreased plant diversity causing poor nutrition for honeybees, experts say.

" It's a complex interaction of several different factors that are causing bees

to die, resulting in quick colony decline, " said Jeff Pettis, entomologist and

chief researcher at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Bee Research Lab in

Beltsville, land.

Losses are alarming not just for honey lovers but for a huge chunk of the global

agricultural market as well. Some 52 of the world's 112 leading crops -- from

apples and soybeans to cocoa and almonds -- rely on pollination. One 2009 study

by economists put the value of insect pollination, mainly by bees, at about $212

billion.

And with human population increasing quickly, observers worry that the bee

decline will deepen a global crisis unfolding from limited crops and soaring

food prices.

The threat to bees is international. England lost more than half its hives in

the last two decades, and baffling bee losses are occurring in Asia, South

America and the Middle East.

A single silver bullet to end the problem is still out of reach. But recent

discoveries are shedding light on possible answers to the puzzle.

Some scientists blame commercial agricultural pesticides such as clothianidin,

which has been linked to millions of bee deaths near farming areas in different

countries. Banned in some European countries, clothianidin remains EPA-approved

and is commonly used on U.S. crops such as corn, wheat and soy.

Another bee threat is parasites such as the varroa destructor, which clings to a

bee as it feeds on hemolymph, or bee's " blood, " and spreads dangerous viruses.

Major infestations will typically wipe out beehives, said Delaplane,

entomology professor at the University of Georgia.

To fight those viral infections, a U.S.-Israeli biotech called Beeologics now

makes an antiviral medicine that exploits a native immune mechanism and boosts

bees' tolerance for disease, say multiple researchers involved with the studies.

Finally, another possible cause for bee deaths is a combination of a virus and a

fungus, which was found in all collapsed colonies in a U.S. study last year. The

viral-fungal duo may destroy bees' memory or navigation functions and contribute

to colony collapse.

Commercial apiaries are far harder hit than independent honey producers, said

small producer Dan Conlon, who owns 700 hives at Warm Colors Apiary in South

Deerfield, Massachusetts. His bees tend to be resilient, living in a rural,

diverse habitat.

" Most of those reporting heavy losses run large operations and are focused on

migratory pollination for their income, " Conlon said.

Early bee reports are poor throughout the United States this winter, including

Georgia, which appears to be losing about one-third of its colonies, said

Delaplane.

Managed U.S. hives numbered 2.68 million last summer, USDA said. That's only

about half of the nation's 5 million hives tallied back in the 1940s.

The nation produced 176 million pounds of honey last year, with wholesale prices

reaching a record $1.603 per pound, the USDA said.

(Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Ellen Wulfhorst)

[Guest guest]

I'm wondering if the migratory beekeepers might not be spreading the infection, whatever it may be, around the country. Since they seem to be the hardest hit, perhaps their bees come in contact with the agent during the pollination season or even encounter infected bees and take the agent back to their own hives. Whatever the case, if bees get wiped out, I think their estimate of economic losses is low.

In a message dated 3/5/2011 5:36:10 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, no_reply writes:

Researchers seek causes of honeybee colony collapse

[Guest guest]

" I'm wondering if the migratory beekeepers might not be spreading the infection,

whatever it may be, around the country. Since they seem to be the hardest hit,

perhaps their bees come in contact with the agent during the pollination season

or even encounter infected bees and take the agent back to their own hives.

Whatever the case, if bees get wiped out, I think their estimate of economic

losses is low. "

Sooner or later will evolve super bees which will be immune to whatever is

killing them, and I do not think that is necessarily a good thing.

Administrator

[Guest guest]

I recently saw and article in print media that said the probable cause is a very strange kind of bacteria/fungus. Scientists really aren't sure how to classify the thing because it seems to have been a regular organism at one time but devolved into a parasitic state close to that of a virus. It is not a virus, however, because it is larger and slightly more complicated, yet it doesn't match the standard definition of a living thing, which is to take in some kind of material and process your own energy.

Anyway, these things are incredibly minute and actually live inside the host cells where they directly absorb energy created by the host cell. I think the article said it was capable of reproducing on its own so it doesn't wreck the cell like a virus does. These things can infect just about all life forms including humans, though the extent of their numbers, kinds and effects isn't known because they aren't tested for and would be hard to detect since they live inside healthy cells.

In a message dated 3/9/2011 1:29:42 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, no_reply writes:

Sooner or later will evolve super bees which will be immune to whatever is killing them, and I do not think that is necessarily a good thing.Administrator