NATURE: Silence of the Bees

[InfiniteNow]

As most of you have probably heard, there is an issue with honeybees dying off. It has been termed as "Colony Collapse Disorder."


The PBS program, Nature, recently had a wonderful special on the issue called "Silence of the Bees."

Nature . Honeybees, Colony Collapse Disorder | Silence of the Bees: Introduction | PBS

In the winter of 2006, a strange phenomenon fell upon honeybee hives across the country. Without a trace, millions of bees vanished from their hives. A precious pollinator of fruits and vegetables, the disappearing bees left billions of dollars of crops at risk and threatened our food supply. The epidemic set researchers scrambling to discover why honeybees were dying in record numbers — and to stop the epidemic in its tracks before it spread further.

Silence of the Bees is the first in-depth look at the search to uncover what is killing the honeybee. The filmmakers of Bees take viewers around the world to the sites of fallen hives, to high-tech labs, where scientists race to uncover clues, and even deep inside honeybee colonies. Silence of the Bees is the story of a riveting, ongoing investigation to save honeybees from dying out. The film goes beyond the unsolved mystery to tell the story of the honeybee itself, its invaluable impact on our diets and takes a look at what’s at stake if honeybees disappear. Silence of the Bees explores the complex world of the honeybee in crisis and instills in viewers a sense of urgency to learn ways to help these extraordinary animals.

You can watch the entire program online for free at the following link:

Nature . Silence of the Bees ~ Video: Full Episode | PBS



They even discuss an alternative to pollination at the end of the program should the bees keep dying. Pretty amazing, although a bit different in scope.

The breaking news seems to be a virus from Australian bees which had been imported. Almost like the effect of smallpox on native americans.

Here is a preview:

YouTube - NATURE | Silence of the Bees | Preview...

YouTube - NATURE | Silence of the Bees | The...

Let's just say the bees keep dying. While we'd prefer to avoid that, it might happen.

What are your suggestions for alternatives?
What can we do instead?
What are the costs and benefits of your suggestion

[InfiniteNow]

I'm not sure I captured this fairly above. There seem to be three primary drivers to the collapse:

1. Parasites from Australian bees (impacting them like smallpox did the indians when europeans came to north america)
2. Pesticides which impact the nervous system and cause difficulty learning/remembering where the hive is
3. Malnutrition (since the bees are feeding on single crops for weeks at a time, instead of many different plants and flowers, they are malnourished, and are experiencing something akin to scurvy)

All of these factors are making them more vulnerable to disease and illness. These diseases and illnesses were never such a factor in the past, but when afflicting bees all at the same time, their effects are cumulative.

[Moontanman]

My wifes cousin just got into bees last summer with five hives and now he has fifteen hives by capturing the swarms this spring. he also has honey by the gallon. His hives are doing extremely well. He doesn't move his hives from place to place and they are near a huge public flower garden. so far no hive collapse problems.

[Pyrotex]

I guess going around to all the hives and giving each bee a teensy-tiny little flu-shot is out of the question, hunh?

[Moontanman]

Originally Posted by Pyrotex

I guess going around to all the hives and giving each bee a teensy-tiny little flu-shot is out of the question, hunh?

If you went around the hive I'm sure each one would be willing to give you a teensy tiny shot!

[Pyrotex]

Are the Australian bees immune to this virus (or parasite--which?)?

Are European bees disappearing too?

Perhaps we could bring over some Auzzie Beez and cross them with our own.

[Galapagos]

I'm curious as to whether or not this is affecting the Africanized "killer" bee populations as well. In Florida, the only thing we can really do to keep them away is establish regular honey bee hives to occupy the area and try to deter the mean bees, but if all our honey bees disappear due to some honey-bee-specific pathogen or mite, it could result in a higher population of the Africanized bees...

[InfiniteNow]

Originally Posted by Pyrotex

Are European bees disappearing too?

Yes, the European bees are also dying. Try to remember, though, that the parasite from the Aussie bees is only one of the factors leading to colony collapse. Malnutrition and pesticides seem to play a critical role, and when all are taken in combination, our pollinating friends become really diseased and ultimatley perish.

Originally Posted by Galapagos

I'm curious as to whether or not this is affecting the Africanized "killer" bee populations as well.

That's a really good question. In fact, in the video to which I linked in the OP, they discussed how they are working to genetically modify africanized bees in such a way that they are tolerant to the Aussie parasite, to pesticides, and to single crop feeding. Let's hope they don't make matters worse, but they do appear to be trying to engineer a super bee.

I hope I've accurately represented the video. You may want to watch for yourself to validate that my summary is correct.

[modest]

Are bee farms affected as well?

If a main culprit is a parasite / disease then one would assume cultivated bee farms would not be immune.

-modest

[InfiniteNow]

Originally Posted by modest

Are bee farms affected as well?

AFAIK, they've been the hardest hit.