by: Chelsea Gifford
Colony Collapse Disorder, sometimes referred to as honeybee depopulation syndrome (HBPS), is a phenomenon in which worker bees from a beehive abruptly disappear. It has no direct explanation although it has been suggested that it may be due to a combination of factors. Starting in 2006, commercial migratory beekeepers along the east coast of the United States began reporting sharp declines in their honeybee colonies. Specific symptoms include: the rapid loss of adult worker bees from affected colonies, a lack of dead worker bees both within and around the affected hives, and the delayed invasion of hive pests. Reports indicate that 35 states have been affected. In 2007, bee losses were approximately 30%. In 2008, those losses increased to 35% nationwide. So far, there has not been a conclusive answer as to why this decline is taking place. Some potential causes are mites, pathogens, pesticides, and different management strategies of both the bee colonies and the farms. Do you feel that the importance of bee pollination has often been neglected? What are some policies that could give bee pollination and pest management more importance in agricultural production?
34 comments:
I have heard pesticides as the reason quite frequently. It may mess up the bee's ability to make its back to its colony. So a reduction in pesticides could help consumers and serve as a natural experiment to see if bee population stabilizes. Yes, I know we would then have lower crop yeilds but that is where GMOs come in. . .
I think government subsidies for farmers who produce without using dangerous pesticides seems like a policy that makes sense. This type of policy would shift the demand toward crops grown by this measure as the price drops, so both sides of the equation consumer and producer would see this as a favorable alternative.
I definitely agree with that policy. The thing is that it is hard to associate pesticides directly with colony collapse disorder because all beehives are different and have been treated differently making it hard to pinpoint the problem. Also, it takes a while for the bees to start showing signs of directional weakness so you never know where they were poisoned.
I think this issue is extremely important and has not received nearly enough attention. Pollination by bees provides millions of dollars worth of ecosystem services that we probably could not ever replace if they disappeared. I don't think enacting subsidies or any type of policy is appropriate at this point because the causes of Colony Collapse Disorder are so unclear. Instead, I feel we should be focusing our efforts on funding research to learn more about this issue.
Pollination is extremely important for the yield of crops and for efficient production. It is often overlooked that it would take so much time and man power to do the job ourselves without bees, and the cost of losing them should be included in thinking about their disappearance. Pesticide reduction is certainly one place to start in looking at recovering populations and keeping these important ecosystem service bees alive.
I've also heard that Electromagnetic radiation may be affecting the bees directional skills, causing bees to leave, get lost and never return. (examples include high power transmission lines, and cell towers). This could explain the lack of corpses around the hive, compared to the proportional drop in species. If this is the case then it seems our very way of life is killing the creatures that also feed us. (pollinattion). Challenging trade off indeed.
I think we have been ignoring the bee problem for far to long. Maybe the government has taken notice but I think that many of us didn't realize how important the bees where until their populations started to be affected. Its hard to implement a policy when no one knows what is going on.
I feel this issue is too important to not get more attention. I was surprised I had never heard about this issue before the policy presentation. Bees are responsible for the pollination of many plant species and not just for making honey.
I feel like this is a disaster waiting to happen. This epidemic is going essentially unnoticed by the public. Why dont news stations talk about things like this more instead of meaning less junl
we can't start pointing the finger at pesticides without actually knowing if that's the problem. yes, fewer pesticides would be a benefit to all kinds of environmental areas, but this could because the something else entirely. Fortunately, beekeepers are a business. This means that they have a vested economic interest in the health of their bees, which gives them incentive to find and fix the problem. The fact that this is a well-known problem should help it to.
I do think that the importance of bee pollination has been neglected. Until recently I had no idea how much honeybees do for the planet. I think a good course of action would be to encourage your community to support and invest in local bee keepers. I don't like the fact that the same honey bees are trucked all over the US to pollinate crops. It also make sense to invest more money into research about CCD. If the bee population continues to decline US agriculture will really suffer.
These theories of why colonies are collapsing seem to be pretty legitimate, but i think they fail to see how each factor may be working together. I've also heard theories that deal with the stress put on the hive when they are moved around to different locations. I think keeping bees close to where they originate from is key in they're survival. Moving from place to place seems almost too easy of an explanation, but when did this CCD start happening compared to how far or frequently these bees were transported long distances?
I wrote my term paper on this topic and after all my research found that the biggest cause was the use of neonicotinoid pesticides which affect the nervous system of the bees and cause them to leave their hives. Large scale farming is to blame for these pesticides and the poor regulations during the Bush Administration around 2004. The United States is now seeing the effects of these pesticides on the honeybee population and it is threatening our food supply.
I have heard about some that some kind of bee virus is affecting the demise, but we should look at other ecosystems with similar populations to find the answer to their mysterious disappearance.
andrew sieving
I think the reduction in the pesticides is needed and also subsidies for farmers you don't use them at all is in need.
@ Witt,
Cause it's not as exciting as Brittney Spear's new haircut of course...but I agree with you, I think this seems like a hidden disaster waiting to show its head when everyone realizes we don't have a lot of food we once did.
The main reason I have heard for HBPS is the recent explosion of cell phone use in the United States. According to articles I have read, the signals being but out by cell phones in the present day are too overwhelming in concentration and number. The cellphone signals seem to be blocking the bee's internal radar making it extremely hard for them to make it back to the nest after leaving to collect pollen.
I've also heard that the drastic rise in cell phone use is responsible. I really don't know what can be done to mitigate this problem if it is indeed cell phone related. People will not be willing to change their lives to protect the bees, even though in the long run they may regret it.
It might be beyond anyones control if it has to do with the changing climate, just like the growing numbers of jellyfish in the oceans
Without a doubt bee colonies have been neglected. Bees are the number one reason for pollination and there is no way that we could ever fulfill the job that they do. I wouldn't doubt that their population decline is due to pesticides. I think more research needs to go into the use of pesticides and herbicides and figure out their effects on bees.
I don't think bee pollination has been neglected, I just think nobody thinks about where their food comes from anymore. The logical thought stops at safeway, and I don't think it's any different for the politicians who are in charge of making policies that ensure this problem gets taken care of. I would argue that this kind of intellectual neglect is apparent in many aspects of 21 century life, and agriculture is just one that is breaking down because of it.
I think that this is something that has been neglected by many for a couple of reasons. We don't know where the problem is coming from and we don't exactly know what the consequences will be if every buzzing bee dies. It does provide a small look into the ways we do things can affect the system as a whole. In the case of pesticides there are tons of residual problems that occur because of their use. So if declining bee populations are a residual problem like pesticide use or antibiotics then it is just one more reason to stop using them!
I was fasenated by this issue last springan wrote a paper on it. I beleave the roles bees play in our agricultural system is grosely overlooked, the service these bees provide during polonation is in the millions of dollars I I remeber correctly. Like you mentioned the cause is unknown. Another possible contributed I learned about was the use of GMOs. I think this is a serious issue and is worth further research.
I am curious as to whether these observed differences in bee hives are truly a recent phenomenon or if they have perhaps been occurring in other locations without notice. My knowledge about bee hives and their behavior is very limited, however; i think it would be interesting to do an experiment with bee hives experiencing these abnormalities, and hives that appear to be fine. If it were possible, transporting a seemingly normal hive to the same locations and conditions as an abnormal hive, and monitoring its various behaviors, may provide insight into the effects that can be transferred by altering living conditions.
I heard something about cell phones may also be causing the disappearance of the honeybees, and that they could just be migrating somewhere new, but they're not sure why they would do that. I do think that they are being over looked. It might not be obvious but we rely heavily on honeybees to pollinate many of our plants.
I've noticed bees around our house seem very confused like they dont know how to fly and their bodies look strange. Their abdomen is extremly skiny. I also worked at an organic farm nature center in the middle of St. Paul MN, and the farmer said our bee's weren't affected because we were so far into the city...removed from the farmland where pesticides are being used
It's creepy that no dead bees can be found. Bees are a highly valuable part of North America's ecosystem. More effort should be put in to determining the cause of this decline.
They are so important! I think I heard a statistic once about 2/3 of our food being pollinated by bees? Is that right? I love honey so I really hope all their colonies don't collapse. I think subsidizing the costs of beekeeping might help, especially for those who are keeping lots of bees close to large agricultural lands/farms.
The role that bee pollination, along with many other aspects of agricultural production, has most definitely been overlooked in it's importance. Insects in general play a larger role in our daily lives than we could ever realize. We need strong legislation to protect our little friends. But first we must figure out the true cause of the collapse.
What types of bees is this article referring to? Are these native species or another kind like the africanized bee species?
ROBERT SEADER
I LOVE MY HONEY!! I haven't heard much on this topic but based on what you have said it makes sense. Pesticides are a tricky discussion however because is there really anyway to prove they are the cause of bee collapse? I don't know but it is a good research topic.
Katie Witters
I do believe the importance of bees and the pollination they do have often been taken for granted. I think policies that should be set in place need to be about pesticides and reducing their use. I also agree that we dont know enough about this issue to set anything into place and funding should go to learning about the problem and different solutions
I believe this issue needs to be addressed. Bee's are a vital part of our ecosystem and with dissappearances was significant as this, something needs to be done. Congress should work with the help of scientists to do something to address this dramatic decline in bee population.
This is a very important issue and really interesting. I have heard bees are starting to die off and it is becoming a major concern.
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