Honeybees 'entomb' hives to protect against pesticides

[Guest guest]

Even bees are trying to protect themselves:

* Honeybees 'entomb' hives to protect against pesticides, say

scientists.

<http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/apr/04/honeybees-entomb-hives>

Honeybees are taking emergency measures to protect their hives

from pesticides, in an extraordinary example of the natural world

adapting swiftly to our depredations, according to a prominent bee

expert. But the bees' last-ditch efforts to save themselves appear

to be unsuccessful. Scientists have found numerous examples of a

new phenomenon -- bees " entombing " or sealing up hive cells full

of pollen to put them out of use, and protect the rest of the hive

from their contents. The pollen stored in the sealed-up cells has

been found to contain dramatically higher levels of pesticides and

other potentially harmful chemicals than the pollen stored in

neighbouring cells, which is used to feed growing young bees...

But the bees' last-ditch efforts to save themselves appear to be

unsuccessful -- the entombing behaviour is found in many hives

that subsequently die off, according to Pettis. " The presence of

entombing is the biggest single predictor of colony loss. It's a

defence mechanism that has failed. " These colonies were likely to

already be in trouble, and their death could be attributed to a

mix of factors in addition to pesticides, he added.

*

London Guardian, United Kingdom

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