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May 4, 2007 at 06:25:38
by Peter Dearman Page 1 of 4 page(s) 
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It sounds like the start of a Kurt Vonnegut novel: Nobody worried all that much about the loss of a few animal species here and there until one day the bees came to their senses and decided to quit producing an unnaturally large surplus of honey for our benefit. One by one, they went on strike and flew off to parts unknown. Among the various mythologies of the apocalypse, fear of insect plagues has always loomed larger than fear of species loss. But this may change, as a strange new plague is wiping out our honey bees one hive at a time. It has been named Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD, by the apiculturalists and apiarists who are scrambling to understand and hopefully stop it. First reported last autumn in the U.S., the list of afflicted countries has now expanded to include several in Europe, as well as Brazil, Taiwan, and possibly Canada. (1)(24)(29) Apparently unknown before this year, CCD is said to follow a unique pattern with several strange characteristics. Bees seem to desert their hive or forget to return home from their foraging runs. The hive population dwindles and then collapses once there are too few bees to maintain it. Typically, no dead bee carcasses lie in or around the afflicted hive, although the queen and a few attendants may remain. The defect, whatever it is, afflicts the adult bee. Larvae continue to develop normally, even as a hive is in the midst of collapse. Stricken colonies may appear normal, as seen from the outside, but when beekeepers look inside the hive box, they find a small number of mature bees caring for a large number of younger and developing bees that remain. Normally, only the oldest bees go out foraging for nectar and pollen, while younger workers act as nurse bees caring for the larvae and cleaning the comb. A healthy hive in mid-summer has between 40,000 and 80,000 bees. Perhaps the most ominous thing about CCD, and one of its most distinguishing characteristics, is that bees and other animals living nearby refrain from raiding the honey and pollen stored away in the dead hive. In previously observed cases of hive collapse (and it is certainly not a rare occurrence) these energy stores are quickly stolen. But with CCD the invasion of hive pests such as the wax moth and small hive beetle is noticeably delayed. (2) Among the possible culprits behind CCD are: a fungus, a virus, a bacterium, a pesticide (or combination of pesticides), GMO crops bearing pesticide genes, erratic weather, or even cell phone radiation. “The odds are some neurotoxin is what’s causing it,” said David VanderDussen, a Canadian beekeeper who recently won an award for developing an environmentally friendly mite repellent. Then again, according to Dennis vanEngelsdorp, the top bee specialist with the Pennsylvania State Department of Agriculture, “We are pretty sure, but not certain, that it is a contagious disease.” Their comments notwithstanding, most scientists are unwilling to say they understand the problem beyond describing its outward appearance. Perhaps a government or UN task force would be a good idea right about now. (3)(25) According to an FAQ published on March 9, 2007 by the Colony Collapse Disorder Working Group based primarily at Penn State University, the first report of CCD was made in mid-November 2006 by Dave Hackenberg, a Pennsylvania beekeeper overwintering his 2900 hives in Florida. Only 1000 survived. Soon other migratory beekeepers reported similar heavy losses. Subsequent reports from beekeepers painted a picture of a marked increase in die-offs, which led to the present concern among bee experts. (2) The name CCD was invented by vanEngelsdorp and his colleagues at Penn State. It reflects their somewhat medical view of the situation. The BBC suggested in a sub-headline to a story on CCD that the problem would be more aptly named the “vanishing bee syndrome.” This proposal may have merit, considering how mass opinion polls influence policy these days. (4) News of the CCD problem hit all of the major media networks in February 2007. A widely run Associated Press story said reports of unusual colony deaths have come in from at least 22 states, and that some commercial beekeepers reported losing more than half of their bees. The same story informed that autopsies of CCD bees showed higher than normal levels of fungi, bacteria and other pathogens, as well as weakened immune systems. It appears as if the bees have got the equivalent of AIDS. (5) An April 15, 2007 story in The Independent reported that the west coast of the U.S. may have lost 60% of its commercial bee population, with an even greater 70% loss on the east coast. The same story said that one of London’s biggest bee-keepers recently reported 23 of his 40 hives empty. But, the U.K. Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was quoted as saying, “There is absolutely no evidence of CCD in the UK.” (6) One must wonder where the truth lies considering the level of sensationalism prevalent in the British press. Case in point, this same story (among several others, to be fair) attributes a juicy but dubious quote to Einstein: “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would only have four years of life left.” (6)(7) Einstein, in all likelihood, never said that, but if he did, it is a justifiable exaggeration. Bees certainly are important, and it will get ugly if we lose them. “It’s not the staples,” said Jeff Pettis of the U.S. Agricultural Research Service. “If you can imagine eating a bowl of oatmeal every day with no fruit on it, that’s what it would be like” without honeybee pollination. (8) The beekeeping industry underpins the American agricultural industry to the tune of $US 15 billion or more. The picture is similar in many countries, especially in the West. Honey bees are used commercially to pollinate about one third of crop species in the U.S. This includes almonds, broccoli, peaches, soybeans, apples, pears, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, and strawberries. Other insects, including other kinds of bees, may be used to pollinate some of these crops, but only bees are reliable on a commercial scale. If the bees go, we will see a change for the worse at our local supermarkets. (1) Of course everyone is hoping for a quick solution to appear, and tantalizing reports have emerged. Recent military research at Edgewood Chemical Biological Center claims to have narrowed the likely cause of CCD to a virus, a micro-parasite or both. This work used a new technology called the Integrated Virus Detection System (IVDS), which can rapidly screen samples for pathogens. These virus laden samples were sent to UC San Francisco, where a suspicious fungus was also discovered in them, suggesting the possibility that the fungus is either an immunosuppressive factor or the fatal pathogen that kills the bees. These “highly preliminary” findings were announced in an April 25, 2007 Los Angeles Times story with the headline, “Experts may have found what’s bugging the bees.” The story called it “the first solid evidence pointing to a potential cause,” and even noted that “there is reason to believe this fungus can be controlled by the antibiotic fumagillin.” (10) (25) Take action -- click here to contact your local newspaper or congress people: Click here to see the most recent messages sent to congressional reps and local newspapers beagle17.gnn.tv The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
I read on the net that "organic colonies" are not affected by this problem. I also read that the same type of problem occured in parts of the US around 1990. by
joed (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 49 comments) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 8:57:39 AM
To begin, here is a link to an essay by Sharon Labchuk, who is not only an organic beekeeper in Prince Edward Island, but also an activist and most recently a political candidate (federal) for Canada's Green Party. This is a 'rewrite' of the email that I quote from in the story above. Colony Collapse and Honeycomb Size Regarding earlier cases that are similar, I don't know what you're referring to. A lot of other stories make a stronger claim than mine does that recent deaths, say circa 2004, that were attributed to varroa mites. I'll go looking a bit. If you want to find out about that, you could try the beekeepers lists, like the one Labchuk refers to in this article. Personally, I don't see the point in hoping that it is a one-time fluke that may have happened before. We are mismanaging bees and they are an extraordinarily precious resource. On a brighter note, I did for the first time think of one obviously bright (as in optimistic) thought. Bees are insects, with short lifespans, so we can presumably get immediate results from improving our practices. Sorry for saying 'our' all the time, as if I am a beekeeper hah, but I think we should look at bees, and all pollinators, as a public good that might warrant special protection. They are certainly more important than spotted owls, right? by
Peter Dearman (10 articles, 32 quicklinks, 9 diaries, 144 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 10:42:05 AM
Here is something about previous similar cases. This would have gone in my article for sure. It's pretty eerie I think. by
Peter Dearman (10 articles, 32 quicklinks, 9 diaries, 144 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 2:24:11 PM
What is happening to bees is also happening to the other four "B's" that are absolutely necessary for a sane, sensible, and successful agricultural system that isn't being used primarily for the benefit of the fossil fuel producers. In the title I've used, 'bugs are all kinds of micro and macro insect life (especially the beneficial soil bacteria needed to produce healthy plants, animals, and people) and for the sake of the alliteration, I've used 'baits' to mean all kinds of earthwsorms, especially those most preferred for fishing 'bait'. Our agriculture is killing off all five of these types of vital aids to good growing practices. Darwin said we're wrong in thinking the dog is man's best friend. According to him, in his second-most poipular book, which was about earthworms, they're the true 'best friend' to mankind. If Einstein really said 'even with exaggeration' that man has only a few days of existence after killing off all of the bees, he probably knew of Darwin's conclusions about earthworms. One of the saddest things of our time (to those who have spent decades studying the better and more profitable way for farming to go, as I have in my 84 years) is to see how determined we, the public, are to protect the unethical and unjustified profits of a system that has no sane and sensible reason for existing. In Central Kentucky in 1956, I was given the basic principles of what I later named the StaMinA Soils System. And I was also pointed toward the goal of making that system practical all over the world. What I was given was based on more than four decades of work by Dr. Julius Hensel, the German biochemist who wrote Das Leben, one chapter of which was translated into English and published in 1893 under the title of Bread from Stones. When 18-year-old Albert Carter Savage read that small book in 1893, he decided to spend his life formulating a complete soil-care system. When I met him in 1956, when I was 34 years old and he was 81, he allowed me to work with him for the months I needed to learn how to use that StaMinA Soils System effectively and profitably. Little did I know how far the oil, chemical, and farm machinery industries would go to stop me. But I soon found out. Now, the world is paying the price of that 'blocking effort' in high-priced, low-quality, poor-tasting, and quick-spoiling foods that have to be put into silly concoctions and killed of all true life-supporting ingredients and then those packaged substitues for foods have to be touted to the tree tops to addict people to them. But, such is life, as long as it lasts. Bill Manning, lsgift@gmail.com by
billmanning (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 21 comments) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 11:50:30 AM
by
Blue Pilgrim (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 997 comments) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 3:05:37 PM
1. Has anyone thought of importing mite-resistant bees from China? 2. Pre-Columbian Indians ate tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, squash, etc. without the help of honeybees. Grapes certainly did not need honeybees when the Vikings set foot on Vineland. The remark that other insects can take up the slack implies that the people who sell honey and the people who make insecticides will suffer. Follow the money. 3. I have not seen a honeybee on my Pennsylvania farm in two years. None of my crops (apples, pears, plums, grapes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, watermelons, cucumbers, squash, peas, and beans to name a few) have suffered. I don't use pesticides. I notice that plenty of small insects are crawling over everything. No doubt they do a lot of pollinating, along with those tiny bees native to the New World. This year the apple, plum, and pear blossoms have been fertilized and incipient fruits are swelling. The earliest blueberries that have bloomed appear to be 100% fertilized without honeybees. Where does the truth lie? Are any of the doomsaying pundits actually dirt farmers like me? by
JackN (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 28 comments) on Friday, May 4, 2007 at 8:27:53 PM
Peter one of my graduate degrees is in Cultural anthro and the bee problem has vexed me, being an avid reader of Einstein's work and comments, I recall you quoted him about the bees and humans-scary, but predictable, so Unless you mind, I am going to put a link from my article up to day to yours, as well as put up your reading list and links in a comment of my own sending my readers over to you. My article is one of my rarer weak attempts at comedy, but I think what you have written here is important so I will list your bibiography, right now, because I do seem to get a lot of readers. by
Professor Emeritus Peter Bagnolo (144 articles, 1 quicklinks, 95 diaries, 1317 comments [5 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, May 5, 2007 at 5:53:20 AM
IT TOOK ME SEVERAL TRIES BUT THE HTML KEPT VEXING ME BUT I FINALLY GOT ALL OF IT IN AND WHEN I FINISHED, THERE YOUR ARTICLE WAS JUST UNDER MINE. DON'T KNOW IF MY PROMPTING AND REFERENCES HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH MOVING IT AHEAD, BUT ANYWAY HERE YOU ARE WHERE MORE FOLKS CAN READ IT. AGAIN HAPPY BUT SORRY I GOOFED UP TRYING SO MANY TIMES TO GET ALL YOUR REFERENCES IN, GOOD LUCK. by
Professor Emeritus Peter Bagnolo (144 articles, 1 quicklinks, 95 diaries, 1317 comments [5 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, May 5, 2007 at 6:31:49 AM
hi peter, just wanted to let you know, your article was posted on wrh, may 3, it still appears about halfway down the homepage, and also here is the link to it in wrh's permanent archives.. rivero does have a rather large readership. thanks again for your very informative article :) k http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/archives/cat_sciencehealth.html#063344 by
k kelly (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 182 comments) on Saturday, May 5, 2007 at 8:26:51 AM
Thanks for telling me that. I also managed to land the article on the top page og Op-ed during its busiest day ever I think. This is thanks to Rob sending an email to all the users telling them about the visitor influx because an Op-ed story was getting super-digged right now. That got me to immediately submit the story, which had just finished going through some 'community editing' over at GNN.tv where I first published it. Thanks Rob. I think I'll submit it to IndyMedia too in a day or so. by
Peter Dearman (10 articles, 32 quicklinks, 9 diaries, 144 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, May 5, 2007 at 8:34:37 AM
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