Honey Bees Disappearing!

[Michaelangelica]

Myth...Yes. There are many bees in my area. Bees are my friends. And, according to the latest buzz, they tell me that they aren't going anywhere, anytime soon.

 

If it is a myth

1 Why are there stats for the USA decline over the last 50 years?

2 Why have Australian beekeepers suddenly got heaps of export orders to send bees to the Stares?

 

Bees have suddenly become big business here with people moving from crops like cotton (needs water) to almond trees ( more $?) beekeepers have found they can hire out their hives as polinators and the honey is just a bonus

[C1ay]

I see that a lot of folks have been stung by the "honey bees are disappearing" myth.

 

Now that you've made the claim can you actually support it? Scientifically?

[Buffy]

This article was just posted at CNN:

A virus found in healthy Australian honey bees may be playing a role in the collapse of honey bee colonies across the United States, researchers reported Thursday.

...

Signs of colony collapse disorder were first reported in the United States in 2004, the same year American beekeepers started importing bees from Australia.

...

The virus identified in the healthy Australian bees is Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) -- named that because it was discovered by Hebrew University researchers.

...

Although worker bees in colony collapse disorder vanish, bees infected with IAPV die close to the hive, after developing shivering wings and paralysis. For some reason, the Australian bees seem to be resistant to IAPV and do not come down with symptoms.

 

Scientists used genetic analyses of bees collected over the past three years and found that IAPV was present in bees that had come from colony collapse disorder hives 96 percent of the time.

 

But the study released Thursday on the Science Express Web site, operated by the journal Science, cautioned that collapse disorder is likely caused by several factors.

 

"This research give us a very good lead to follow, but we do not believe IAPV is acting alone," said Jeffery S. Pettis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Bee Research Laboratory and a co-author of the study. "Other stressors on the colony are likely involved."

 

This could explain why bees in Australia may be resistant to colony collapse.

 

"There are no cases ... in Australia at all," entomologist Dave Britton of the Australian Museum told the Sydney Morning Herald last month. "It is a Northern Hemisphere phenomenon."

 

Also, to counter EStein's claim that its a myth above, the article confirms:

Colony collapse disorder has killed millions of bees -- up to 90 percent of colonies in some U.S. beekeeping operations -- imperiling the crops largely dependent upon bees for pollination, such as oranges, blueberries, apples and almonds.

 

Quoth the bee, "Nevermore,"

Buffy

[Cedars]

There may be some legitimacy to ESteins claim. The beekeeper I am most familiar with (moms neighbor) has not had any issue with colony collapse. But he is a small keeper and pretty isolated from other keepers (as far as I know).

 

Reading over some of the statements I have found on the net, here is one quote:

 

United States Honey Production Down 11 Percent

Honey production in 2006 from producers with five or more colonies totalled 155 million pounds, down 11 percent from 2005. There were 2.39 million colonies producing honey in 2006, down 1 percent from2005. Yield per colony averaged 64.7 pounds, down 11 percent from the 72.4 pounds in 2005.

 

What this doesnt show is where the production fell. Was it in drought states? Has the massive development craze of the last few years impacted bees ability to produce honey in some areas?

 

Another quote:

 

"In one report, a Mr Hackenberg, a Florida beekeeper is suffering along with his bees. In a matter of weeks, he lost just over 2,000 of his 3,000 hives. The yard of his honey farm near Tampa Bay, is littered with empty boxes, which normally would be full of worker bees. It has been reported that some beekeepers across the US are reporting losses of up to 95% and federal scientists, the National Beekeepers Association and state researchers have come together to form an emergency working group to try and halt the disastrous trend."

 

So the above is a massive bee operation which suffered a great loss. But 2,000 hives out of 2.3 million colonies is hardly noteworthy, except to this particular beekeeper, for him, it is crippling. But if it is a virus, bacteria, or mite issue (or combination), one would expect it to rage thru an operation such as the above. All farmers who confine large numbers of animals (or crops) together can experience a devastating loss like this, on occasion.

 

Another quote:

 

"Strangely, Colony Collapse Disorder is inconsistent even within localised regions. Some beekeepers have managed to retain completely healthy hives which makes it even more difficult to find the cause."

 

Is it really "some beekeepers have managed..." or is it "most beekeepers have managed....?" I should have spent more time at the beekeeper exhibit at the state fair and asked some questions regarding what these people are seeing.

 

Apis-UK March 2007

[Buffy]

Yep. Its like global warming: we should wait until every last bee is counted before we even consider that there's something that ought to be done.

 

Until then its just hysteria and probably a hoax.

 

Great way to run a public policy operation!

 

Cranium meets quartz,

Buffy

[Cedars]

Yep. Its like global warming: we should wait until every last bee is counted before we even consider that there's something that ought to be done.

 

Until then its just hysteria and probably a hoax.

 

Great way to run a public policy operation!

 

Cranium meets quartz,

Buffy

 

Not hysteria. More like media sensationalism. Can you find one article that lists how many hives have been affected? The closest one is this:

 

"A recent survey conducted by the Apiary Inspectors of America estimated that between 651,000 and 875,000 of the nation’s estimated 2.4 million colonies were lost over the winter of 2006 – 2007. While a majority of these losses were attributable to known bee threats, over 25% of beekeepers were considered to have CCD [1].

 

In the mid-Atlantic region, continuing surveys from several sources have demonstrated recurring periods of heavy winter losses. Specifically, beekeepers reported experiencing heavy losses in the spring of 2001, 2004 [2], and 2007 [3]."

 

So half a million hives (75%) are lost due to factors outside of CCD. This also does not indicate whether the majority of these CCD losses were confined to very large beekeeping operations, where you are most likely to see a disease rage thru a population. 500 beekeepers with 1000 hives is half a million hives.

 

The article reports colony collapses back to 1868:

 

http://www.beeculture.com/content/ColonyCollapseDisorderPDFs/7%20Colony%20Collapse%20Disorder%20Have%20We%20Seen%20This%20Before%20-%20Robyn%20M.%20Underwood%20and%20Dennis%20vanEngelsdorp.pdf

 

This lengthy article describes some initial findings regarding the CCD and a common factor of this:

 

1. All were migratory beekeepers. All had moved their colonies at least 2 times in the 2006 season, with some colonies being moved as many as five times over the 2006 season.

 

2. All experienced a cumulative dead-out rate of at least 30% over the course of the season. It is common that 10% of colonies die after transportation; some beekeepers claim losses of 30% are not uncommon after pollination of crops such as blueberries.

 

3. Upon finding a dead-out colony, all interviewed beekeepers placed the dead-out equipment on strong neighboring colonies to facilitate comb care and splitting. When the queen from the strong colony began to lay in the dead out equipment, the dead-out equipment and brood were removed (split) from the surviving colony. Some beekeepers then introduced a mated queen or queen cell into the queenless unit while others allowed the unit to rear a new queen naturally.

 

4. All producers experienced some form of extraordinary “Stress” at least 2 months prior to the first incidence of “die off” associated with “Fall dwindle disease”. The nature of this stress was variable but included nutritional stress (apiary overcrowding, pollination of crops with little nutritional value), dramatic pollen and nectar dearth, or varroa mite pressure. Due to drought in some areas, the bees may have had limited water resources or contaminated water supplies.

 

From this article:

http://www.ento.psu.edu/MAAREC/pressReleases/FallDwindleUpdate0107.pdf

 

As I said, if you overcrowd an animal or a crop you will experience losses. You have the above group admitting to using antibiotics to keep these animals healthy. It wouldnt surprise me a bit to find out they have managed to create a superbug.

 

Statement of

May R. Berenbaum

Professor and Head, Department of Entomology

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and

Chair, Committee on the Status of Pollinators in North America

 

Over the past two decades, concern has grown around the world about apparent reductions in the abundance of pollinators of all descriptions, with declines reported on no fewer than four continents. During this same time period in the U.S., the western honey bee Apis mellifera, the world’s premier managed pollinator species, experienced dramatic population declines, primarily as a result of the accidental introduction in the 1980s of two bloodsucking parasitic mites. Between 1947 and 2005, colony numbers nationwide declined by over 40%, from 5.9 million to 2.4 million. These losses have occurred as demand for pollination services has soared for a number of fruit, nut and vegetable crops, most notably for almonds.

 

Bees in America have been beset of late; colony collapse disorder is just the most recent of a seemingly unrelenting series of devastating problems for the beekeeping industry. Introduced pests and parasites, microbial diseases, pesticide drift, and competition with Africanized bees have all contributed to reductions in colony numbers since NASS assessments began. Exacerbating the shortages created by the decline in numbers is the steadily increasing demand for pollination services. Shortages were sufficiently acute that, in 2005, for the first time since passage of the Honeybee Act of 1922, honey bees were imported from outside the U.S., primarily to meet the needs of the $2 billion almond crop. Importing bees, although necessary to meet the demand for pollination, is an inherently risky enterprise in that it increases the chances of introducing new pests and parasites. Even before CCD came to light, our committee estimated that, if honey bee numbers continue to decline at the rates documented from 1989 to 1996, managed honey bees will cease to exist by 2035. Historically, feral, or “wild,” honey bees have provided pollination services to both natural and managed plant communities but no system is in place for monitoring their numbers. Some evidence suggests that parasite infestations have all but eliminated feral colonies in some areas, yet in the absence of systematic monitoring there is no certainty as to their distribution or abundance.

 

The Committee concluded its deliberations before Colony Collapse Disorder came to light. That honey bees are experiencing losses on an unprecedented scale, however, was essentially predicted by the report—over-reliance on one managed non-native species is inherently unstable.

 

Take time to read the part about Wild Pollinators near the bottom:

 

Colony Collapse Disorder and Pollinator Decline

[Buffy]

Not hysteria. More like media sensationalism. Can you find one article that lists how many hives have been affected?

This is hardly the place to get into the issue that the popular press oversimplifies discussion of scientific topics, but even the LA Times this morning said:

Although the United States has experienced other bee die-offs, the latest episode has been one of the worst, affecting about 23% of beekeepers. Typically, 50% to 90% of a keeper's colonies are affected as worker bees fail to return to their hives, leaving the queen with a handful of newborns.

...

The number of bee colonies in the country is about 2.5 million, half as many as in the 1940s and '50s.

 

"We don't have a great deal of buffer" for dealing with bee losses, said entomologist Diana Cox-Foster of Pennsylvania State University.

 

I think the information you post above is very important in backing up the concern from Cox-Foster. You are saying there are plenty of reasons why CCD has happened--and there's plenty of data that it has--and even if it was predictable due to bad management--really very much the same as what led to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s--its still an issue that requires action.

 

While indeed predictable, the prediction is only that "these short-sighted methods will lead to some disease wiping out large numbers of bees because of lack of genetic diversity.

 

Guess what? Its happened, and now there is indeed a correctly characterized "mystery" about what exactly that disease is and what can be done about it.

 

I don't think either of us are defending the proposition that it is a "myth" that bees are disappearing and that as a result there is a risk to agriculture.

 

That is the only thing that deserves derision here: its denial that there is any problem we need to worry our little heads over.

 

Think Responsibly, :thumbs_up

Buffy

[Qfwfq]

I don't think Cedars appreciated your tongue-in-cheek! :thumbs_up

[Cedars]

This is hardly the place to get into the issue that the popular press oversimplifies discussion of scientific topics, but even

Although the United States has experienced other bee die-offs, *note they do not say CCD* the latest episode has been one of the worst, affecting about 23% of beekeepers.

Of this 23%, 70-75% of the die-off is within normal parameters, not CCD, as I understand it. Keep in mind the reduction in the number of hives since the 40s - 50s is not entirely due to people being wiped out by disease, they just quit beekeeping. In the area that my mom lives and where I grew up, I remember many of the local bee keepers quitting because of the hassle and the fact larger operations would come in, drop off hives for free, give you a case of honey and you didnt have to do anything.

 

I think the information you post above is very important in backing up the concern from Cox-Foster. You are saying there are plenty of reasons why CCD has happened--and there's plenty of data that it has--and even if it was predictable due to bad management--really very much the same as what led to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s--its still an issue that requires action.

 

While indeed predictable, the prediction is only that "these short-sighted methods will lead to some disease wiping out large numbers of bees because of lack of genetic diversity.

 

Think Responsibly, :thumbs_up

Buffy

 

But we didnt call the dust bowl effects a disorder. It was drought compiled with farming practices that are not compatable with drought conditions. Some hives have shown high and multiple known diseases, others have shown one or two diseases (though there are alot of unknowns). As far as this Israeli acute paralysis, there is one finding which does not yet declare this as the cause. "Scientists have found a virus associated with the destruction of a large fraction of American commercial bee colonies, but they have not been able to prove that it is the cause of the mysterious disease that has wreaked havoc on the bee industry."

 

Its like when distemper rages thru a puppy mill and having pet store owners declare an epidemic in the New York Times. Its sloppy work on the part of the dog breeder that caused the outbreak, but this does not put it into a proportion of an epidemic in the dog breeding world.

 

From your link:

 

"All of the infected colonies, moreover, had bees from Australia or were housed close to bees from that country."

 

"Sela reported that about 30% of bees he studied in Israel had incorporated the viral genome into their genetic blueprint and had become resistant to the virus. If the virus is shown to be the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder, it may be possible to replace current bee colonies with hives of resistant specimens."

[EStein]

Yep. Its like global warming: we should wait until every last bee is counted before we even consider that there's something that ought to be done.

 

Until then its just hysteria and probably a hoax.

 

Great way to run a public policy operation!

 

Cranium meets quartz,

Buffy

 

I couldn't have said it better.

[Michaelangelica]

Originally Posted by CNN

A virus found in healthy Australian honey bees may be playing a role in the collapse of honey bee colonies across the United States, researchers reported Thursday.

Australian bee keepers are furious about this report they say it is total crap.

they found the virus, called Israel acute paralysis virus, was "a significant marker" for the disorder, found in 25 of the 30 sick colonies tested.They say the virus was present in a sample of "apparently healthy" imported Australian bees, and that all the samples they obtained from US colonies affected by the disorder used imported bees from Australia, or were located close to hives with Australian bees.

 

The Australian Honey Bee Industry Council said the claims were "drawing a very long bow".

SMH

Julian Wolfagen from the Tasmanian Beekeepers Association believes commercial interests in the US are behind the claim.

 

"I can't see any plausable reason why - particularly as Australia is comparatively disease-free particularly when compared to the United States - that we could have some malaise that we're not aware of, because we don't have any CCD symptoms here in Australia.

 

"Why should it then pop up with our bees in the USA? Not likely," Mr Wolfagen said.

Beekeepers deny virus claims - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Questionable circumstances

 

Warren Taylor ships tens of thousands of Australian bees to Canada each year and he questions the conclusion that Australian bees may be the source of CCD.

 

"We've been shipping bees to Canada for 15 years," he said.

 

"There's been no colony collapse in Australian bees."

 

Mr Taylor, managing director of Australian Queen Bee Exporters, says he has very suspicious about the claims from the US.

 

"I'm curious as to whether there's some hidden agenda with the local bee producers," he said.

 

"In Canada, we don't have local bee producers, so we're not competing against anyone, but in the US there's a large number of bee producers and we're obviously competing directly with them."

 

He says the credibility of the claim is questionable.

 

"There's a lot of unanswered questions, and the Americans choose not to test colonies that haven't collapsed to see if there's any Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus in that."

 

There is irony in Australian bees coming under suspicion because beekeepers in the US have relied on honey makers from Australia to keep their hives alive.

 

The head of the Australian Honey Bee Council, Stephen Ware, says there is no support for the theory that Australian bees are to blame for.

 

"I'd certainly call it dodgy," he said.

 

"It's akin to a drowning man throwing off his life preserver and saying, 'the life preserver was why I was drowning'."

 

Exports in danger

 

The export in bees has grown to a $5 million industry since 2004 when the US started accepting Australian imports. Mr Ware says there is a risk US authorities may now ban Australian bees.

"Every chance that potentially there could be a ban on exports, and we certainly don't believe that's warranted," he said.

 

"We hope that cooler heads will take charge and that the analysis will be properly examined, and will be shown to be flawed."

 

Despite the findings of the US report, Australian bees are being defended by a leader in the US beekeeping industry.

 

Mr Weaver says the virus found in an Australian bee can not be solely responsible for the crisis.

 

"There is a strong correlation in the data that they've presented, but I think that much more work remains to be done," he said.

 

"They need to obtain additional samples of Australian bees. There is in fact only one direct sample of Australian bees that's part of that study, and a sample of one is not persuasive."

 

CSIRO bee pathologist Dr Denis Anderson says he is highly sceptical about the claims in the US report, and so is the Australian Government.

 

A statement from federal Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran says any trade restrictions imposed on the basis of the research would be inconsistent with America's trade obligations, because there is not enough evidence.

US authorities suspect Aust bees carrying virus - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

[Peregrine]

I can't think of the species either. We get them in may and june. They are fast moving but can also hover in midair. I know they kill other bumblebees. If anyone knows the species I sure would be interested in knowing.

[DougF]

I think you are talking about the Africanized honey bees (AHB), known colloquially as "killer bees",

I know of three of these hives in central Florida this year and you Do Not want to mess with them. :)

 

 

Africanized bee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Michaelangelica]

Virus Implicated In Colony Collapse Disorder In Bees

Science Daily — A team led by scientists from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Pennsylvania State University, the USDA Agricultural Research Service, University of Arizona, and 454 Life Sciences has found a significant connection between the Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) and colony collapse disorder (CCD) in honey bees.

 

The findings, an important step in addressing the disorder that is decimating bee colonies across the country, are published in the journal Science.

 

In colony collapse disorder, honey bee colonies inexplicably lose all of their worker bees. CCD has resulted in a loss of 50-90% of colonies in beekeeping operations across the U.S.

ScienceDaily: Virus Implicated In Colony Collapse Disorder In Bees

[EStein]

Bees are buzzing with activity in my town. I had to clean about 50 of them off my windshield, last week. It was a sticky mess.

[Buffy]

Here's a strange random observation:

 

A friend of mine has a house in Los Angeles. He's got a screw-in fluorescent light by the front door. There's a bee hive next door, and the bees are attracted to the light and are for some reason dying in large numbers on the front porch. Because he's having work done on it, there's a large gap underneath his front door and the dying bees appear to crawl under the door and there are a dozen or so spread across his entry hall every morning.

 

There do not appear to be any shorts or even exposed wires on the light that they might be getting shocked by, so this proximity does not seem to be any indicator of the direct cause.

 

Anyone know what to make of this?

 

Are they just putting the bzzt in bzzz,

Buffy

[Michaelangelica]

Here's a strange random observation:

 

there's a large gap underneath his front door and the dying bees appear to crawl under the door and there are a dozen or so spread across his entry hall every morning.

 

 

Anyone know what to make of this?

 

Buffy

This is strange.

I have never seen bees atracted by light.

 

The entrance to modern bee-hives is very much like entering though a crack in a doorway.

 

A once bee keeper