Decline of and dangers to honey bees

[Clive]

I was sent this article about bees and found it utterly fascinating. the person who wrote it will be joining the forum soon.

Clive

GOLDEN GOOSE IN BEEKEEPING

The whole world is alarmed regarding the latest reports about the disappearance of honey bees. “The picture is alarming – honey bee losses are severe in many countries”. Rogers et al, ABJ, May 2007, p441). Fears are justifiable since honey bees are involved in pollination of most of the foods that humans and animals consume in our planet. Such fears would be even more justified if we were to take into consideration Albert Einstein’s prediction, should honey bees disappear from our planet, humanity would last exactly four years. There is no doubt in my mind that this catastrophe would take place if bees were to disappear, but fear not, it is not going to happen, at least not at this point and time. However, we are in for pretty hard times if the present trend in beekeeping continues. As in every other aspect of the world’s economy, beekeeping is ruled by money, enormous amounts of money. Beekeeping, for some, is becoming the goose that lays golden eggs. As Kirk Webster, a commercial beekeeper, so very aptly quoted Mark Twain, (ABJ, September 2006, p755), “In America, the dollar is our God, and how to get it is our religion.” Unfortunately, this phenomenon applies not only to America but also to the entire world.
   It would take several pages of this publication for me to explain all the factors that I believe to be involved in the process of the disappearance of honey bees. I hope to be able to convey my thoughts in a simple way that is appealing to many readers, especially to beekeepers, and that my dialogue makes as much sense to them as it does to me.

   I have been a beekeeper for 70 years and a veterinarian for 45 years and  performed research in honey bee pest management for the last 15 years as a devoted nature lover, qualities that I believe make me well prepared to address the factors that I believe contribute to the to the present aliment of honey bees. In order to understand what is happening in beekeeping I believe that a brief analysis of the situation should be made at this point. We have the same diseases and parasites in beekeeping as we had 20 years ago (bacteria, mites, protozoans, viruses, hive beetles, Cape Bees, fungi, moths, lots of stress and definitely, transgenic seeds! Used to be, that if we had an ailment affecting honey bees in a large scale, we would be made aware of it the moment we came near a hive due to the stench of dead bees and one could see a pile of dead bees either in front of the hive or inside on the bottom board. In modern days we have added a convenient phrase to what we used to see in the past, disappearing bee syndrome, an inappropriate terminology. Why? Simply, because it does not exist. (Syndrome: the aggregate of symptoms associated with any morbid process, and constituting together the picture of the disease, Stedman’s Medical Dictionary, p1339). Yes, bees do disappear but it is not a syndrome. It is a condition, not an enigma as it has been made to be. It is an occurrence very easily related to economics. Instead, I prefer the term colony collapse disorder, or CCD, term that describes the situation appropriately.

   Pharmaceutical/chemical manufacturing enterprises and the scientific community are enjoying a “windfall” from beekeepers in particular and beekeeping in general who worry at the prospect of going bankrupt, fact amply described in the media. It is not difficult to make a connection regarding money spent about disappearing honey bees and the factors responsible for their disappearance. Beekeepers are desperate attempting to save their bees and livelihood trying all kinds of remedies, commercial or otherwise, hoping to find the “silver bullet,” term commonly used by just about any one speaking about such remedies. Government agencies, institutions, beekeepers and beekeeping associations are spending huge amounts of money; for example, Scientific AG Co. donates $75,000 to California Association, ABJ, September 2006, p723, multimillion dollar funding now in process by United States legislature assigning funds for honey bee research for the next four years, Senate Bill, ABJ, August 1007, p663. Bee research conferences are being held frequently in the United States and in foreign countries, to which private individuals, corporate business, institutions and government representatives converge to discuss their views and findings about this disorder. All of them have a common view; beekeepers are losing great numbers of bees. All agree about lots of contributing ideas; almost as many different ones as there are investigators working on the subject. Unfortunately, in spite of the large number of accomplishments brought to these meetings, everything is not in agreement. Beekeepers in attendance complain that scientists are using different testing methods, times and numbers, (Bill Ruzicka, ABJ, August 2007, p658. Hence the need for an international standard treatment method as could be found in the FGMO/thymol treatment method. On the other hand, these meetings are good for the industry because they show ample range of social impact and human interaction. Proof: read the minutia of honey bee conferences, meetings, congresses and other contributing authors who are jumping into the scene,
 i. e.  Mike McInnes, linking honey bees, diabetes and stress, ABJ, July 2007, p562. But do they solve the question of CCD? It does not appear to do so because the problem continues unabated.

   Honey bees are very sensitive organisms and respond to just about all kinds of variants introduced into their colony. Beekeepers in their desperation are pouring many kinds of chemicals into the hives without taking into consideration that most of these remedies are toxic to their bees and that together with the illnesses affecting the bees, parasites, pesticides, transport to long distances (migratory beekeeping), all these conditions cause stress to honey bees. Honey bees under stress abandon their normal activities including hygienic behavior, an activity of vital importance for hive welfare, the bees many times respond to these factors by absconding. In other instances, chemicals, (especially those that leave residues in the combs), diseases and manipulation affect laying and brood rearing ending with diminished populations. This is especially true during winter months when bees are confined to the hives with little or no brood development. Under these circumstances, disasters such as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) are likely to occur.

   CCD has given bee researchers a field day with huge money grants. This is also good for beekeeping because I am sure that most of them will discover remedies to the ailments that may be affecting honey bees. Some of them already have. For instance Mariano Higes, a Spanish scientist,   isolated a Nosema variant that has been found in a great number of colonies seemingly affected by CCD. I live near Mr. Higes place of work and I have known him for over ten years. He is a talented and dedicated researcher who may have found another contributing factor to CCD. However, We should take into consideration that pathogens can inflict severe damage to their hosts when the host’s strength is weakened as happens when the bees are stressed. Spain had a severe drought two years ago which I am sure was responsible for a great number of honey bee colonies collapsing, and perhaps the newly discovered Nosema strain contributed to their losses but it is doubtful that it was the sole responsible factor. I keep my bee colonies in the area, Guadalajara Province, and my bees are not disappearing. I have fabulous bee populations in my colonies (See attached photograph). This statement is not meant to take credit away from my friend’s work, but to indicate that investigators must look further to other causes if we expect to arrive at a definite solution to CCD.

   In my mind the solution to CCD is related primarily to the effect of the combination of factors such as: long distance movement of colonies, chemicals used within the colonies, diseases, parasites, GMO seeds and stress. Genetically engineered crops, (commonly known as GMO’s) are widely used in agriculture as enumerated in several pages of American Bee Journal, Internet, and multiple agriculture related literature. It has been documented that GMO’s actions are not limited to the crops for which they are intended but that GMO´s are also transmitted to adjacent plants in which honey bees forage. Do we need to worry about the effects of transgenic seeds in apiculture? In my opinion, the answer is yes. GMO’s are widely used in agriculture with few or no restrictions. Their presence has been shown in just about every plant that bears flowers hence the likelihood for bees to become exposed and be affected by them. One of the signs that have been noted in bees attributed to GMO’s is disorientation. Presumably, bees feeding on plants from GMO seeds become disoriented and cannot return to their hives. I have personally inspected hives affected by CCD that had no evidence or signs of illness. The brood chamber and supers had abundant honey but few bees; the queens were found surrounded by a handful of bees. There were neither fresh brood nor eggs. Reasonably, the queens had stopped laying.

   Conclusion. I have not experienced CCD in neither my colonies in Virginia, United States of America nor my colonies in Spain. I know beekeepers (hobbyists and commercial) who report having great success in their business, all having one factor in common. All, including me, use FGMO/thymol treatments. I have been performing research with FGMO/thymol since 1993. Since then, I have made my findings known immediately after completion each year, and continue to do so for the benefit of beekeeping. I continue to receive phone calls and mail regarding the use of FGMO/thymol. My replies are the same. My work continues to be successful using my established protocol. It is  significant that that I have not treated my bees in Virginia since May 2007. In Spain, my partners and I continue to use FGMO/thymol treatments because occasional mites are being brought from weak/sick colonies by robbing bees or wandering drones.
The beekeeping industry is in trouble to say the least. Commercial preparations are expensive, have limitations of application, may be toxic to bees and leave residues in wax and honey while food grade mineral oil and natural plant extract (FGMO/thymol)  formula and protocol developed by me does not and the ingredients are readily available at very economic prices. It has been demonstrated by means of strict gas chromatography testing in the United States and Europe that when applied according to my protocol, no residues have been found in either honey or wax even though my formulation is applied during the entire year. Honey bee researchers have expressed their opinion that FGMO/thymol treatments are not recommended by them because FGMO/thymol research has not been “scientifically” researched, alleging that I did not use control hives in some of my research. During nearly fifteen  years, only five (known) researchers have alleged that FGMO did not work for them. Reading the description of their test procedures, the answer for their failure was clear and evident. They did not follow the protocol established by me; hence they did not replicate my work. .

   Beekeeping is in dire need of utilization of all resources and tools available to attain unity and progress. For the sake of beekeeping and for what benefit may arise out of it, it is  evident that some of the resources that are being spent in research could be dedicated to replicate my FGMO/thymol work. There is no reason for not attaining the same results as I have, provided that my protocol is followed, as required by replication. A lot could be accomplished and very little lost. My whole life has been dedicated to my love for honey bees and it shall remain forever so. I have never searched for wealth, fame or glory for my work hence replication could be called XYZ for that matter. Failure to replicate my work looms as a great disservice to beekeeping and to humanity.
Dr. Pedro P. Rodriguez
Virginia Beach, VA, United States of America
                       and
Alcalá de Henares, Spain
August 16, 2007

[nick]

Fascinating Pedro. Thanks a lot for that and welcome to the forum.

Nick

[nick]

This year looks to be good for Galiicia at least. Rain and coll temperatures have led to the best honey harvest for 20 years.

http://www.espacioblog.com/forestman/post/2007/09/11/excelente-ano-los-apicultores-gallegos

[nick]

from the Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2007/sep/12/spain
Spanish scientists accuse Asian parasite of beehive genocide

Giles Tremlett in Madrid The Guardian Wednesday September 12 2007
Scientists in Spain believe they have found the killer parasite that is responsible for wiping out bee colonies from California to Cannes.

The assassin, they believe, is Nosema ceranae, an Asian parasite which has worked its way into hives across Europe and America, wreaking terrible damage on the bees' internal organs.

It is a close cousin of Nosema apis, which has lived in relative harmony with bees in Europe and elsewhere for centuries. However, the new variety of Nosema is hardier than the old one, and so continues to thrive under harsh weather conditions. "It does not care whether it rains or whether it is more or less hot," said researcher Mariano Higes. It also spreads easily and rapidly.

The scientists at the Regional Apiculture Centre in Marchamalo, near the central Spanish city of Guadalajara, said the discovery opened the way to discovering ways of controlling and eradicating the pest.

Mr Higes said that a wave of what is known as colony collapse disorder, which has wiped out hives across two continents, may also be due to other factors, but that Nosema was a key cause. "We think that Nosema ceranae could do it alone," he said.

The results of the Spanish research, carried out on samples from Germany, Spain, Switzerland and France, are due to be published in the next edition of the journal Invertebrate Microbiology.

The team has also been studying samples sent from the US, where colony collapse disorder has hit 35 states and affected up to 875,000 out of 2.4 million hives. The disorder, which has also wiped out bees in Canada, Brazil, India and Europe, kills up to 90% of bees in each hive.

A significant collapse in the worldwide bee population could threaten food supplies as bees pollinate 90 crops around the world.

Scientists in the US have previously suggested that Nosema ceranae might be to blame, but the Spanish researchers insist that their work provides harder evidence. In particular, Mr Higes said he believed that theories blaming pesticides were being exaggerated.

Wilder theories in the US have blamed everything from an al-Qaida plot to mobile phones.

In Britain, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), has insisted that recent bee losses are not a sign of colony collapse disorder but the work of the varroa mite, which eats bees and their larvae.

[Technopat]

Greetings All,
Yet another great thread that was started while Technopat was lolling on beach last summer .
First of all, welcome to this great iberianatureforum, Pedro - might not yet be of the exacting standards required of the scientific community, but slowly and surely getting there  -.

Bee that as it may (yes Lisa, pun intended), heard on radio yesterday that there's a project in Cordoba which is using bees as indicators of levels of local contamination (rough translation) as they are particularily sensitive to air quality. Unfortunately, only heard the tail end of the interview so have no other info. - bit like seeing something worth photo-ing and not having a camera.
Anyone out there able to fill in the missing bits?

Bee-loving-(well-more-precisely-honey-loving) regs., Technopat

[Simon]

Bad news on the way folks. I put this on the IbNat blog while Nick's on holiday working hard for the environment:

There is growing concern worldwide regarding a new threat to the bee population. The Guardian recently reported a dramatic decline in bee numbers in the USA. The phenomenon is called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), in which whole populations of hives just ‘disappear’. The report reflects on various causes ranging from climate change to stress. In the US thousands of swarms are trucked coast-to-coast on tour, pollinating fruit crops such as California's massive almond industry. The syndrome is also affecting colonies in Europe and an international research effort is under way, based in Switzerland, aimed at solving the mystery. Meanwhile in Spain populations are dropping dramatically. A Spanish blog, Miscelánea de Noticias Apícolas de España, gives regular up to date information.

See the links here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/may/31/animalwelfare.environment

http://miscelanea-noticias.blogspot.com/

Simon

[lisa]

So the problem isn't solved yet then Simon? mind you, with all that shifting them about/messing with nature I'm not surprised it's happened in the U.S.

Confused of Cantabria.

[Simon]

You're too right Lisa. I couldn't believe my eyes when I read that California is using such a risky monoculture, but then on reflection I could believe it all too well

Catastrophic of Catalonia

[Clive]

Hi all,

Some more news with regards to hive collapse disorder... maybe it doesn't actually exists as a disease but may simply be a combination of parasitic and ecological factors...

Commercial beekeeper Dave Hackenberg described the working life of a bee as difficult:

"My bees are in California pollinating almonds. In the middle of March they are going to be trucked all the way across the United States all the way back to Florida to pollinate oranges then they are trucked another thousand miles north to pollinate apples in Pennsylvania.

"When they go to these places, the only thing that's there is the crop that you pollinate, it's a big monoculture.

"We all like steak and potatoes and we all like corn, but if we eat any of these on their own for a month at a time then your body would not be in the best of shape."

Monoculture has to take a huge amount of blame for not supplying good habitats for bee survival.... More at the BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7925397.stm

[Technopat]

Greetings All,
In my ongoing crusade to give credit to the Spanish scientific community when credit is due (as opposed to always ravin' & rantin' against the politicians), just an update on the stuff Nick & Clive et al have already posted here:

The research by Mariano Higes et al at the Centro Apícola Regional (Regional Apicultural Center) in Marchamalo, Guadalajara - just round the corner from where I like to go hiking, so although it ain't Madrid, it is more or less in my neck of the woods - has just been published in

Journal of Invertebrate Pathology
Volume 97, Issue 1, January 2008, Pages 76-78 (Received 12 March 2007;
accepted 11 June 2007.
Available online 20 June 2007.)

Mariano Higes et al
Centro Apícola Regional, Dirección General de la Producción Agropecuaria, Consejería de Agricultura, Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, 19180 Marchamalo, Guadalajara, Spain & Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain

Abstract

Nosema ceranae is a Microsporidia recently described as a parasite in Apis mellifera honeybees in Europe. Due to the short time since its description, no epidemiological data are available.

Of course, this being the scientific community, only the abstract is available for general consumption (which is just as well actually (Sp. anyone?) 'cos I certainly wouldn't understand any of the actual (Sp. anyone?) research):
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6WJV-4P12J89-2&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=32849ce5b04ac2b287d095114c6c516c#aff1

I saw him being interviewed this morning on La aventura del saber on La 2 and he said that the research is based on 4000 hives & 7 years.

Keep-up-the-good-work-folks! regs.,
Technopat

[Simon]

Hi Teeps, et al,

That outline/abstract is pretty much par for the course in scientific writing - never making any judgement and very careful to hedge bets, etc. I don't think it's saying anything one way or the other but it would be worth reading the conclusions in the flesh, of course. 

Regs

Simon

PS small world dept #3445667/23a: I used to have friends in Marchamalo so I know it well!