ENY-150/IN720: Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in Honey Bees Jamie Ellis 2 Introduction Beekeepers around the United States have reported higher-than-usual colony losses since the fall of 2006. These elevated losses have been called “Colony Collapse Disorder” (or CCD). Some beekeepers in states reporting CCD have lost 50-90% of their colonies, often within a matter of weeks. Despite these high losses, the average number of colony losses has been ~30% since CCD was first reported in 2006. Regardless, this translates into thousands of dead colonies and millions of dead bees. In a country where honey bees contribute billions of dollars in added revenue to the agriculture industry, these bee losses cannot be taken lightly. Colony Collapse Disorder may not be a new disorder. In fact, many colonies have died over the past 50-60 years displaying symptoms similar to those of CCD. The disorder as described in older literature has been called spring dwindle disease, fall dwindle disease, autumn collapse, May disease, and disappearing disease. We may never know if these historic occurrences share a common cause with modern-day CCD.

They do, however, share the symptoms. Colony Collapse Disorder Symptomatically, colonies with CCD can appear healthy just weeks prior to collapse. However, the adult bees soon "disappear" (hence its historic nickname "disappearing disease") from the colonies, leaving behind a box full of honey, pollen, capped brood, a queen, and maybe a few worker bees. Beekeepers report that colonies with CCD do not contain any dead bees, nor are there dead bees on the ground outside of the colonies. The adult bees simply vanish. The final symptom is that small hive beetles, wax moths, and other nearby honey bees ignore the empty hives even though the hives contain foodstuffs on which they ordinarily feed. Generally, the symptoms of CCD are defined as follows: Collapsed colonies complete absence of adult bees in colonies, with few or no dead bees in or around colonies, the presence of capped brood, and the presence of food stores (both honey and bee bread) that are not robbed by other bees or typical colony pests (small hive beetles, wax moths, etc.). If robbed, the robbing is delayed by a number of days.

Collapsing colonies an insufficient number of bees to maintain the amount of brood in the colony, the workforce is composed largely of younger adult bees, the queen is present, and the cluster is reluctant to consume food provided to them by the beekeeper. Figure 1. Healthy colonies of bees (a) contain thousands of worker bees (b). Colonies suffering from Colony Collapse Disorder have few or no bees remaining in the hive. Credit: Sean McCann, University of Florida [Click thumbnail to enlarge.] What causes CCD? The cause of CCD is under investigation. At this point, almost every conceivable and realistic cause remains a possibility. The leading candidates and a brief explanation of their potential role are listed below. This is not a comprehensive list and the candidates occur in no particular order. It is important to note that this list may change as new information on CCD becomes available. Such changes could result in the addition or exclusion of any of the following potential causes. The author makes no attempt to promote or undermine any one of the following theories.

Traditional bee pests and diseases (including American foulbrood, European foulbrood, chalkbrood, nosema, small hive beetles, and tracheal mites): Although considered potential causes, “traditional” bee maladies (those nearly-cosmopolitan throughout the United States and globally) likely are not responsible for causing CCD. This is because they do not have a history of promoting CCD-like symptoms. That said, traditional bee pests and diseases may exacerbate the disorder, so scientists have not abandoned experiments investigating them. Honey Bee management practices: Management style is a broad category but it can include the type of income pursued with bees (honey production, pollination services, etc.) or what routine colony management beekeepers perform (splitting hives, swarm control, chemical use, etc.). Both of these vary considerably among beekeepers so this possible cause of CCD is given less attention. That said, poor management can make any colony malady worse. Queen source: Scientists are investigating the lack of genetic diversity and lineage of bees, both related to queen quality, as possible causes of CCD.

Regarding the former, relatively few breeder queens are used in the United States to produce the millions of queen bees (and therefore all bees) used throughout the United States. Geneticists refer to this as a genetic bottle neck. This lack of genetic biodiversity can make bees increasingly susceptible to any pest/disease that invades the system. Chemical use in bee colonies: Like farmers in other agricultural sectors, beekeepers often attempt to chemically-control the various maladies affecting their honey bees in an effort to keep their bees healthy and productive. Investigators recently have found a number of sub-lethal effects of these chemicals on honey bees (workers, queens, and drones) even when the chemicals were used according to label and in accordance with best management practices suggested by specialists. These sub-lethal effects have led some to consider the role of in-hive chemical use in the CCD paradigm. Chemical toxins in the environment: Another chemically-oriented theory is that toxins in the environment are responsible for CCD. Because pesticides are used widely in cropping systems in an effort to kill herbivorous insects, one is left to consider the potential for non-target chemical effects on foraging bees.

In addition to being exposed to toxins while foraging, honey bees also may encounter toxins by drinking water contaminated with chemical runoff, encountering various chemicals (household, commercial, etc.) through contact outside of the hive, or via direct inhalation. Genetically modified crops: Some people have proposed that genetically modified crops may be responsible for the widespread bee deaths. Interestingly, many seeds from which genetically modified crops are grown are dipped first in systemic insecticides that later may appear in the plants' nectar and pollen. This makes genetically modified plants suspect because of their chemical treatment history, not just because they are genetically modified. Scientists have begun initial investigations into both theories but no conclusive data have been collected. Varroa mites and associated pathogens: Even with the concerns surrounding CCD, varroa mites remain the world's most destructive honey bee killer. As such, varroa and the viruses they transmit have been considered as possible causes of CCD. Further, varroa often are controlled chemically by beekeepers. So varroa (perhaps not directly) has been considered a potential cause of CCD because the mite itself is damaging, it transmits viruses to bees, and it can elicit chemical responses from beekeepers.

Despite this, there have been instances of colonies showing symptoms of CCD when their varroa populations were under control. Nutritional fitness: Scientists have proposed nutritional fitness of adult bees as a potential cause of CCD. This topic is being investigated although little information exists currently to support/refute the role of nutrition. Malnutrition is a stress to bee's, possibly weakening the bees immune systems. A weak immune system can affect a bee’s ability to fight pests and diseases. Undiscovered/new pests and diseases: Finally, undiscovered or unidentified pests/pathogens are considered possible causes of CCD. Some believe that a new pest/disease may have been introduced into the United States and is causing CCD. To give one example, Nosema apis (a microsporidian that lives in the digestive tract of honey bees) has been present in the United States for many years. In 2006, scientists discovered and identified a new nosema species, Nosema ceranae, present in some colonies displaying symptoms of CCD (it also has been found in bee samples dating back to 1995). When this disease is present in bees in elevated levels, the bees leave their colonies, never to return. Although the role of N.

ceranae in the CCD complex is not understood, it and other new pathogens may play an important role in elevated bee deaths. Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus is another example of a recently-discovered pathogen that may play a role in colony losses. Synergisms between the above stressors: Many scientists believe that CCD is caused by a combination of the factors above. To illustrate this point, some dead bees showing symptoms of CCD have had elevated levels of normally-benign pathogens in their bodies, possibly indicating a compromised immune system. In theory, any stress or combination of stresses (chemicals, genetic bottlenecks, varroa, etc.) can suppress a bee's immune system. Considering synergistic effects as a potential cause of CCD makes the disorder increasingly harder to study. How will CCD affect the general public? In general, most people respect honey bees, recognizing their importance, while being cautious when near them. This is not surprising because honey bees can inflict a painful sting. Stings aside, most people also recognize honey bees for the sweet honey that they produce.

To be sure, the production and sale of honey supports thousands of beekeeper families and provides the consumer with an alternative to sugar (incidentally, there is no evidence that honey from CCD colonies is unsafe for human consumption). However, honey is of only minor importance compared to the benefits afforded humans by honey bee pollination. Beekeepers managing their bees for purposes of pollination load their colonies on trucks and move them around the country, going from blooming crop to blooming crop. Growers pay beekeepers from $40-150 per colony just to ensure that they will have an adequate supply of honey bees to pollinate their crop. In return, the growers benefit by having a higher fruit/vegetable/nut production per acre, larger size, and better shape of the product, and even enhanced product taste in many instances. The benefits of honey bee pollination are not to be taken lightly. The simple act of beekeepers moving honey bees around the country ensures our country's food supply. Agriculture needs honey bees and their disappearance is cause for concern. Yet, no one believes that honey bees will disappear altogether, even with the concerns over CCD.

Instead, the average American may experience increased food prices and decreased food availability if honey bees continue to die at the current rate. The almond industry illustrates this point well. Almond producers in California continue to plant more acres of almonds every year yet honey bee populations have suffered a steady decline during the same time period. The latest estimation suggests that by 2012, California almonds will need 2 of the 2.5 million colonies present in the United States. just to be pollinated adequately (~1.5 million colonies are taken to California to pollinate almonds currently). If all of the bees are going to California for almond pollination, what will happen to apples in Washington? Blueberries in Maine? Citrus in Florida? Etc.? This loss of bees could begin a price war in the pollination industry, resulting in growers being forced to pay higher rent prices for bee colonies. The net effect is that the consumer will have to pay a higher price for the food that they currently enjoy. In the worst case scenario, food availability will begin to decrease as honey bees die. The benefits of honey bees are undeniable and often under-appreciated. Because CCD has initiated a rapid loss of colonies in the United States and globally, the general public should be alarmed.

Perhaps the worst thing to come from all of this is that the loss of bees could signal a decline in the health of our environment. Honey bees are biological indicators, meaning that their status is a reflection of the health of the general environment. If true, bee losses may be the beginning of a much larger environmental issue. Figure 2. Honey bees are important pollinators of the nation's crops. Pollen adheres to bees' bodies when they visit flowers (like this citrus flower in picture a). As they go from flower to flower, they transport the pollen between flowers, thus pollinating the flowers. Flowers that are adequately pollinated produce fruit (b), vegetables, or nuts. Higher fruit set, larger fruit, uniformly-shaped fruit, and better taste are all indications of successful pollination. Credit: Sean McCann, University of Florida [Click thumbnail to enlarge.] What is being done? Scientists, beekeepers, government officials, various industries, etc. are beginning to investigate various avenues of CCD. These groups have initiated a number of investigations into the possible causes of CCD. At this point, it is safe to assume that most potential causes of CCD are being investigated.

In addition to this, many granting agencies realize the importance of honey bees and have begun to distribute research funds in an effort to find the cause and a cure. Figure 3. Scientists are trying to determine the source of Colony Collapse Disorder. Credit: Sean McCann, University of Florida [Click thumbnail to enlarge.] What can beekeepers do to avoid CCD? (Modified from recommendations made by the CCD Working Group ) Do not combine collapsing colonies with otherwise healthy ones - the cause of CCD has not been identified so it is possible that combining a sick colony with a healthy one will "contaminate" or "infect" the healthy colony. If you find abandoned hive equipment and the cause of bee death is suspicious, store the equipment in a manner that prohibits other bees from accessing it. Do not let neighboring colonies rob out equipment that has hived collapsed colonies. Do not reuse the equipment if the colony displayed symptoms of CCD. Such equipment should be stored securely until CCD is understood better. Use an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach for varroa control in honey bee colonies. This approach can minimize the need for chemical use in bee colonies, lessening bee exposure to potentially toxic chemicals.

If varroa are a problem, use approved miticides rather than off-label home remedies. Keep colonies strong by practicing best management practices . Please contact your county Extension agent if you have any questions regarding CCD, honey bees, or beekeeping in general. References Footnotes 1. This document is ENY-150 (IN720), one of a series of the Entomology and Nematology Department, UF/IFAS Extension. Publication date May 2007. Revised July 2010 and September 2013. For more publications related to horticulture/agriculture, please visit the EDIS website at . 2. Jamie Ellis, associate professor, Entomology and Nematology Department, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611. The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations.

For more information on obtaining other UF/IFAS Extension publications, contact your county's UF/IFAS Extension office. U.S. Department of Agriculture, UF/IFAS Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A & M University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, dean for UF/IFAS Extension. Bee Colony Collapse Disorder Bee Colony Collapse Disorder Bee Colony Collapse Disorder What does it look like? Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) was first reported in 2006. Beekeepers began reporting high colony losses where the adult honeybees simply disappeared from the hives, almost all at the same time. There were few, if any, dead bees found in or around the hives. The queen and immature bees (brood) were often found in the hives with plenty of food stores, inadequately attended by a few adult bees. What causes it? CCD is believed to be complex and a result of multiple factors. One study evaluated 61 factors, and found that no single stressor stood out as the primary cause of CCD. However, colonies affected by CCD had more pathogens and more types of pathogens than colonies without CCD.

Pathogens are disease-causing organisms. A group of stakeholders that gathered in 2012 found a similar consensus, that a complex group of stressors and pathogens are associated with CCD. How is the problem changing? The study of CCD has improved scientists' understanding that one or multiple stressors can lead to colony loss. In addition to CCD, parasites and pathogens, poor nutrition, pesticide exposure, lack of genetic diversity, and habitat loss can weaken or kill honeybee colonies. The number of colonies reported to be lost to CCD has been declining since 2008, but overall colony loss rate is still a major concern. For the past eight years, about 30% of colonies have been lost each winter, but that number dropped to 23% in 2013-14 . In 2013 , surveyors attributed about 30% of colony losses to CCD, compared to 60% of colony losses in 2008.

If you have questions about colony collapse disorder, or any pesticide-related topic, please call NPIC at 1-800-858-7378 (8:00am - 12:00pm PST), or email at npic@ace.orst.edu . Additional Resources: Colony Collapse Disorder | Environmental Leadership, Ethics, and Action Environmental Leadership, Ethics, and Action by flv2105 . As Colony Collapse Disorder is decimating entire bee colonies, commercial pollinators are faced with rising costs and challenges in an effort to stay in business. Honey bee pollinating an almond blossom--Courtesy of artolog/Flickr Creative Commons “A decline in the numbers of Apis Mellifera [the honey bee], the world’s most widely distributed, semi-domesticated insect, doesn’t just mean a shortage of honey for toast and tea. In fact, the economic value of honey, wax and other bee products is trivial in comparison to the honey bee’s services as a pollinator,” says entomologist May R.

Berenbaum in the March 2, 2007 New York Times article “ Losing their Buzz .” Oftentimes the debate around Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) focuses solely on the causes of the disappearance of the bees “and the reader,” according to a report by Randal Rucker , agricultural economist, “ is left to speculate on the relationship between CCD and the supply of pollination services.” The impact of CCD on U.S. commercial pollinators is in fact far reaching: CCD has a marked effect on the cost of pollination, and on the rising cost of producing honey bees and of renting them for pollination purposes. An investigation of the economic implications and the economic costs of CCD is an important element of the debate. The Apis mellifera, the world’s “premier managed pollinator species,” is a principal pollinating actor across the continents. The honey bee transfers the pollen grain to receptive female floral parts so they can be fertilized. As the bees flit from flower to flower they collect nectar. In this process, as Rucker points out, grains of pollen become attached to their bodies and, in the transferral to the flower, fertilize the plant which enables its reproduction.

As Berenbaum points out in this article, “3/4 of the 250,000 […] species of flowering plants on the planet rely on mobile partners – pollinators – to carry out this vital process.” These mobile partners, “’the birds and the bees’ remain an essential fact of life; as long as plants depend on pollinators, so will people.” PBS reports on the bees’ role in pollinating our crops: A strong colony of honey bees, as Rucker et al. point out in this article, consists of one queen, 15,000-30,000 worker bees that are sterile females and a few thousand males or drones whose sole responsibility is to fertilize the queen. Although colonies have historically always suffered losses, in 2006 David Hackenberg , a Pennsylvania bee-keeper noticed an unprecedented decline in his colonies. The unusual characteristics of the empty hives, with no dead bodies around, has been leading scientists ever since to speculate on the cause of what became known as Colony Collapse Disorder. CCD has had strong repercussions on the commercial pollinating business.

Although bee colony decline, according to Berenbaum in this article, has not affected corn and other grain crops that are fertilized by the wind, it has seriously affected animal-pollinated foods: most fruits, nuts, and vegetables – the diet from which we derive all vitamins. As a result of CCD, beekeeping, an age old tradition dating back to the ancient Egyptians 5000 years ago, is seeing the costs of bee production rise. Producers are confronted with the increased costs of renting bees to pollinate their crops, according to Hoy Carman , Professor of Agricultural & Resource Economics at U. C. Davis. Bees being trucked--Courtesy of Emmett Unlimetted/Flickr Creative Commons Colony losses and the need for colony replacement are understood as an intrinsic part of bee keeping and replacement methods are generally expensive. After 2006, winter losses increased from 14 to 36%, and beekeepers have been working to address this sharp increase. The method of choice used to replace about 80% of the colonies lost is a costly one.

It is the “making increase” method or splitting of the hive: 50% of the hive is moved to a healthy and new hive that will be fertilized by a queen acquired from a commercial queen breeder. This expensive process relies on the buying of one queen bee per split. In addition to the cost of the queen, Rucker points out that the beekeeper incurs a 20 minute labor cost per colony to transfer “the four or five frames of brood, bees, and honey stores from the parent colony to stock the nuc colony.” Boulder Colorado beekeeper, Tom Theobald , sympathizes with the challenges commercial beekeepers are faced with: “I sympathize with commercial beekeepers. I can survive the exit of bee keeping from my life. For these commercial beekeepers this is their life. They don’t deserve this.” As the number of bee colonies decline, not only are our crops at stake but so is the business of commercial beekeeping. by flv2105 . Bees have been disappearing for centuries. To some, Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) as a discrete phenomenon does not exist. In an effort to study the cause of this decline, a researcher questions whether the methods of inquiry are scientific.

Bee hives abandoned by worker bees-- Courtesy of mdjdfan/ Flickr Clreative Commons In a BBC World Service Report from March 2009, “‘No Proof’ of bee killer theory,” science reporter Matt McGrath stresses that honey bees are “of crucial importance to the local economy.” It is undeniable that the honey bee is fundamental to the continued agricultural productivity and economic health of America and the world. In 2006 David Hackenberg , a Pennsylvania bee-keeper, sounded the alarm: he had found his bee boxes empty of bees, no dead bees in the neighborhood, no bodies to be found. The mysterious disappearance of the bees was to be called “Colony Collapse Disorder.” But is this decline of the bees really such a new phenomenon? While scientists are researching the potential causes of this sudden and drastic collapse of bee colonies, and pointing to discrete culprits such as pesticides, fungicides, stress, monoculture food, and mites, it remains unclear whether what Dave Hackenberg and other bee keepers, noted beginning in 2006 was an unprecedented event.

The question then is: is this decline a new disorder, what has been called “Colony Collapse Disorder,” or is it just a phenomenon that has been happening for hundreds of years but that, given this 2006 publicity, has come to be seen as a new phenomenon? In my previous blog posts, I have focused on the possible causes of CCD – pesticides , and in particular neonicotinoids , fungicides , and viruses – without questioning the basic hypothesis underlying the debate–that Colony Collapse Disorder exists as a discrete phenomenon. Scientists, according to Renee Johnson , specialist in agricultural policy for the congressional research service, do not argue about whether the bee colonies are declining. The colonies are. There is consensus, furthermore, that this decline is not brought on by a single factor but rather by a multiplicity of factors acting synergistically . The question remains: why has the decline of bees that has always been integral to bee life been named in 2006 CCD? Donald Steinkraus , entomologist at the University of Arkansas , states in a November 8, 2011 interview, that the death of bees is part of a natural process: “Colonies die off. They always have.

Every bee keeper knows that. There have been major declines in bee keeping before, even before major chemicals came into use. It has been historically shown. It is not a new phenomenon.” So why is it being treated as a new phenomenon? Steinkraus points first to the flaw in identifying CCD as a discrete disorder. Beyond that he also underscores the flawed approach of identifying a potential cause for CCD based on the analyses of dead bees. Upon analyses of dead bees, Steinkraus points out that scientists have found certain viruses present among all the dead bees. It is tempting to conclude, as he says, that the viruses found among all the dead bees are the viruses responsible for killing them: “They all died of this virus because they all had this virus present. However, the presence of microorganisms is not proof of disease. People are analyzing the bees genetically to see what microbes are present and they are finding zillions of microbes. Finding zillions of species of microbes present in the bees even if they are known pathogens is no proof of disease. If someone looks in your mouth, for instance, […] they find that your mouth houses something like 200 different species of bacteria at all times. […] but these bacteria are not causing disease.

The presence of these microorganisms is not proof of disease.” Steinkraus underscores the absurdity of such reasoning: These speculations or opinions, in Steinkraus’ view, about the potential causes of CCD are getting a lot of media attention. Instead of presenting opinion or speculation as scientific evidence, he claims one should perform scientific experiments on the dead bees in order to find a cause for a decline that has existed among bee colonies for centuries. People, as Steinkraus points out, are finding ”all these microorganisms and [saying] ‘this is the cause.’ But instead of doing experiments to prove the cause, everybody is just writing these papers left and right and getting all kinds of press.” Steinkraus points to flaws in reasoning and in scientific method: 1) the assumption that the decline in bee colonies is a new phenomenon and 2) that the studies of this decline are not conducted in a scientifically sound manner but rather driven by opinion and speculation. According to Steinkraus CCD, per se, may not be a discrete phenomenon and the methods used to identify the causes of the decline in bee colonies may be questionable. by flv2105 .

To some, it is not pesticides or fungicides, but rather viruses, and in particular the Israeli Acute Paralytic Virus, that play an important role in Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). How is one to plot a course around all these differing opinions? In this age where an abundance of information is at our fingertips, it is easy to give in to a natural desire to jump to conclusions when it comes to suggesting the causes of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). CCD is a complex synergistic phenomenon where a number of factors have been identified as contributing to the decline of the bee colonies. On this point everyone in the scientific community agrees, says Renee Johnson , specialist in agricultural policy for the Congressional Research Service. As part of my research to date, I have focused on pesticides , in particular neonicotinoids , that, lacing the pollen, end up being stored in the hive, and on fungicides that wreak their havoc in the heart of the hive, destroying the bee’s intestinal flora. Among the other factors identified as playing a role in CCD are viruses . Viruses behave in a similar manner whether they infect bees or humans.

According to Beeologics , an international firm that focuses on protecting bees from viruses, viruses will infect the host in a variety of manners : through varroa mite bites, through the alimentary track during feeding, or through trauma on the body. They will spread throughout the colony either horizontally — from bee to bee, from fecal matter or infested food –, or vertically — from the queen to her eggs. Just as in humans, viruses will strike a colony more effectively when it is weakened by stressors such as overcrowding, lack of forage diversity, pesticide-laden pollen, or the reduced genetic pool of the queen bees. Furthermore, bad flying conditions that relegate the bees to their hive and lead them to defecate in the hive also have an effect on the spread of disease. Honeybee with deformed wings-- Courtesy of Klaas de Gelder/ Flickr Creative Commons Among the many viruses that affect honey bees, the Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) has been given particular attention across scientific disciplines.

Given how bees and humans transmit viruses in similar ways, there has been, according to Science News article , ” Virus Implicated in Colony Collapse Disorder in Bees,” a “profound synergy within the [research] group bringing together entomology, microbiology, and bio-informatics.” Closely related to the Acute Bee Paralysis Virus, IAPV, transmitted by varroa mites , is, as Beeologics points out on its website , “the most consistent indicator of Colony Collapse Disorder.” First identified in Israel in 2004, IAPV, as science reporter Roxanne Khamsi points out in a News scientist article , causes “bees to develop shivering wings and eventually become paralyzed, leading to death just outside the hive.” The U.S. strain of IAPV is distinct from the Israeli one and seems to be rapidly changing and spreading throughout the U.S. Beeologics is very involved in researching this virus.

In a phone interview on November 8, 2011, Eyal Ben-Chanoch , CEO of Beeologics, discussed the experiment his researchers had conducted on hives to ascertain the role of IAPV in CCD: “we were able to show in controlled trial that when we inoculate healthy hives with the virus, we get similar symptoms to CCD. It’s not necessarily a one to one [cause and effect] because other things can do it too, but we showed that when you inoculate the virus into a healthy bee hive after very short period you get CCD-like symptoms.” Even though the results of this scientific experiment point to the very important role of IAPV in the decline of honey bee colonies, Ben-Chanoch stressed that this is only one small step in understanding the nuances of the issue. In discussing the spread of the virus among bees, he underscored the complexities involved in studying infectious diseases: “[The spread of infectious diseases] is not well understood in any infectious disease.

Again, it is science in progress, but if somebody will tell you that they know, they just make statements that are irresponsible.” Jeff Pettis , Research leader for the United States Department of Agriculture speaks about IAPV and underscores the fact that the findings concerning the correlation between IAPV and CCD are not conclusive: In my October 27 post , I highlighted the conviction of some people in the industry that pesticides, in particular neonicotinoids, played, without a doubt, a crucial role in CCD. Today, my research led me to viruses and in particular to IAPV which, in the view of researchers at Beeologics, for instance, play a salient role in CCD. How are we to navigate amidst so many firm convictions? Professor Donald Steinkraus , entomologist at the University of Arkansas, stresses the need to distinguish between speculation and science when reporting on potential causes of CCD. He hearkens back, in a phone interview with me on November 8, 2011, to the basic experimentation principles of Louis Pasteur , and in particular to the importance of testing hypotheses on randomized samples.

As a scientist he does not like to speculate: As we continue to explore the factors possibly contributing to CCD, Donald Steinkraus reminds us that science is not a discipline of rapid solutions driven solely by passion but rather a field driven by hypotheses, data, and patient analysis. by flv2105 . In and of themselves pesticides may not be the sole culprits of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Could understanding the synergisms between these chemicals help solve the mystery of CCD? Beeswax Candles--Courtesy of Roberrific/Flickr Creative Commons The snowstorm is looming. Tom Theobald , Boulder Colorado bee keeper, will retire to his honey house to watch the early winter flakes dance in the cold air. There, he will be “doing a run of hand-dipped beeswax candles.” After all, when the power goes out he always reverts to the work of small and industrious insects, the honey bees, whose burning wax will shed light in his cabin. Theobald can enjoy the process of making beeswax candles and can survive the exit of the bees from his life were his colonies to continue to wane because of CCD.

Commercial bee keepers, as he says, cannot–as they are the most affected economically by the decline of the bees. While one may be able to pinpoint the role of one specific pesticide in CCD, the mystery of CCD is intensified as the interactions between the many chemical ingredients used in 21st century American agriculture become apparent. Theobald takes my call on November 1, 2011, just before the storm. This time we don’t focus merely on the systemic pesticide chlothianidin , but rather discuss the complexity of synergisms, the interactions of various pesticides on the health of the hive and the bee. Theobald confides that fungicides “only entered his consciousness just recently,” as part of a larger investigation into neonicotinoids , nicotine-derived pesticides. As I mentioned in an earlier blog , fungi are crucial to the health of the hive. They break down the pollen inside the hive. As Theobald points out, fungicides disrupt the bee’s intestinal flora. Bee bread is only a partly digested product that needs intestinal flora to be metabolized.

Fungicides, instead, “decrease the microbial diversity of the bee’s food source” according to David Doll , Farm Advisor for the University of California Cooperative Extension. However, since fungicides, like pesticides, are required for a profitable crop, they become an integral element of the pollination process and therefore pose health risks to honey bees. According to David Doll , fungicides are generally applied around or at bloom when they will adhere to the pollen. Their application during bloom should, therefore, be regulated. Unlike Europe that errs on the side of caution, banning pesticides until they are proven not to be harmful, in the US there is, as reporter for the GMO journal Deniza Gertzberg points out, “no accurate and complete picture of what pesticides are used, where and in what amounts, or the accurate measures of just what the maximum exposure is in agricultural or urban settings on blooming plants.” Jan Knodel, Extension Entomologist for North Dakota State University presents guidelines for reducing pesticide poisoning to bees: As bees work the hardest during bloom, they will thus inevitably bring back the fungicide-laced pollen to the hive where they will store it to be eaten later or where it is eaten immediately, its nutritional value having been altered by the fungicides.

Theobald focuses on the fungicide boscalid in particular. Introduced in the USA in 2003, boscalid, the active ingredient in the fungicide emerald , is a respiration inhibitor within the fungal cell. It is highly successful in fighting fungal diseases in fruits, vegetables and grapes that are used for wine. In the non-committal language of the EPA boscalid is “practically nontoxic to terrestrial animals and is moderately toxic to aquatic animals on an acute exposure basis.” However, according to the PAN pesticides database , “population-level effects on honeybees may occur even if a pesticide has low acute toxicity.

[…] certain pesticides interfere with honeybee reproduction, ability to navigate, or temperature regulation, any of which can have an effect on long-term survival of honey bee colonies.” A recent study by James Frazier, professor of entomology at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences highlights the magnitude of the problem of pesticides like boscalid making their way into the bee’s hives and lacing their food with poison: “on average six different pesticides, and in some cases, as many as 39 pesticides were found in hives across the United States.” This study focuses not on one specific pesticide but rather on the presence of multiple pesticides, in fact “98 pesticides and metabolites detected in […] bee pollen alone,” suggesting the need for research on the synergisms between pesticides that might underlie the demise of the bees. Theobald echoes the need for research on the potentially lethal synergisms of various pesticides on bees, as he refers to a 2010 report by the Cornell University Cooperative Extension stating the need for such studies, as “some fungicides may affect a bee’s ability to tolerate other pesticides.” It is not only about chlothianidin . It is not merely about boscalid.

According to Gertzberg, over 1,200 active ingredients are distributed among 18,000 products nationwide and are now integral to the honey bees’ landscape. The complexity of the demise of the bees lies in the synergisms between these chemicals. by flv2105 . According to Tom Theobald, a Boulder Colorado bee keeper, chlothianidin is causing the decline of bee colonies. How and when did the bees get poisoned? “These neonicotinoids are huge. This is the insecticidal equivalent of plutonium,” said Tom Theobald , in a phone interview on October 26, 2011. In my last blog post , I asked whether chlothianidin was responsible for CCD. To some, to Tom Theobald, there is no doubt. Long before CCD became a national story in 2006, Tom Theobald had been experiencing unusual losses among his honey bee colonies. As early as the winter of 1995, with the appearance of the varroa mites , the Colorado bee keeper’s colonies had suffered serious declines, their hives being abandoned, teeming with honey that other bees failed to forage.

The varroa mite was considered the culprit at the time. As its impact diminished, the winter losses, however, continued to escalate. This escalation coincided, in Theobald’s view, with the introduction of the pesticide Imidachloprid . Imidacloprid, first registered for use in the US by the EPA in 1994 and banned in France since 2004, in Germany and Italy since 2008 , is a neonicotinoid that systematically penetrates the plant and is used to control sucking and chewing insects. It penetrates the insect’s nervous system , blocking its neural pathway that, in insects, is more abundant than in warm-blooded animals. The insect that sucks on the treated crop will become paralysed and die. Imidacloprid is in fact known to be highly toxic to bees. In 2003, when its patent ran out, it was replaced by another neonicotinoid, chlothianidin. On his Colorado honey farm, Tom Theobald set out like Sherlock Holmes to try to explore the mystery of his disappearing bees.

His colonies had ended the summer strong: “the brood nest was the size of a basketball.” Yet somehow, by October, the brood nest had suffered a precipitous decline in size – “it had become the size of a softball.” The colony of 30,000 bees had declined to 3,000. Puzzled by this decline and given the absence of varroa mites, he figured that the queen must have either stopped laying, stopped laying viable brood, or that the larvae were dying. This period in the fall, when the colony is producing the winter brood, is a crucial one: there must be a critical mass of bees to protect the colony, to serve as the outer layer, the “sacrificial blanket” as it were of the hive that keeps the dormant bees warm throughout the cold winter months. With the break in the brood cycle, there was no winter layer and the colonies simply collapsed. Bee colonies--Courtesy of Avalanche Looms/Flickr Creative Commons Why this sudden arrest in procreative activity? Theobald looked over to the surrounding corn fields.

The corn pollen contained the neonicotinoid chlothianidin known to compromise the fertility of the queen and the viability of the brood, as explained in the PAN pesticides Database : “Population-level effects on honeybees may occur even if a pesticide has low acute toxicity. For example, certain pesticides interfere with honeybee reproduction, ability to navigate, or temperature regulation, any of which can have an effect on long-term survival of honeybee colonies. The neonicotinoids, pyrethroids and keto-enol pesticides are some types of pesticides causing one or more of these effects.” The bees, Theobald explained in his interview, will store pollen and not use it as long as there is fresh pollen available. Thus the pesticide-laden corn pollen culled in the summer got “stored in the pantry” until the supply of fresh pollen ran out. At that point, around October, the neonicotinoid of the stored pollen attacked the queen’s reproductive system. When the summer bees die, having worked themselves to death, winter bees normally replace them. Now Theobald’s summer bees had died and there were no winter bees to take over and repopulate the colony.

Chlothianidin will enter its tenth year on the market and it has yet to meet the requirements of registration. When chlothianidin was approved in 2003, there was no pressing insect scourge, Theobald points out, that required immediate approval of the pesticide. What was running out was Bayer ‘s, the manufacturing company’s, patent for Imidacloprid. So today, as he says, “we are subjected to all this damage not to protect the world against an insect but to protect Bayer’s market share.” "We want bees, not toxic chemicals"--Courtesy of Avaazorg/Flickr Creative Commons Given the risks and the damages, is there then any advantage to the use of these neonicotinoids? No. Not only is it killing the bees, according to Theobald, but it is poisoning the soil: “If you are a farmer and you get on this boat, what does your soil look like in five years? You don’t have soil. You have real estate.” As chlothianidin has a half life of nineteen years, it takes over 100 years for the soil to purge itself of the chemical.

While the effect on the bees’ neural receptors is cumulative and irreversible, Theobald admonishes “it goes way beyond the bees.” by flv2105 . Chlothianidin, a neonicotinoid, may be one of the causes of Colony Collapse Disorder. Why is it still on the market? “Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a barrage of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life?” Rachel Carson ’s call to arms is as current today as it was in 1962. The use of pesticides in America’s farmlands today continues to create concern regarding the ease of legalization and laxness of regulation. Clothianidin and CCD (Photo courtesy of Timw_brap) The disappearance of bees across the globe remains an open question, although clear attention is being paid to pesticides as potentially contributing factors. The connection of pesticides to Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is an example of both the lack of regulation and of supervision at the federal level when it comes to marketing and distributing highly noxious chemicals.

The story of one pesticide in particular, however, highlights the recognition that, as Paul Brooks, Carlson’s editor, says: in our “overorganized and overmechanized age, individual initiative and courage still count.” While scientists agree that CCD is “a syndrome caused by many different factors, working in combination or synergistically,” research continues to focus on pesticides. One pesticide in particular is raising a buzz in the bee community as well as on the federal level. The case of chlothianidin , a neonicotinoid (considered a “green” pesticide because it is derived from nicotine), underscores the difficulties encountered in challenging large manufacturing companies and the EPA . This nicotine-derived pesticide, that the EPA registered conditionally in 2003, is a systemic pesticide. It is, as Tom Theobald , a Colorado beekeeper, points out, “incorporated into the system of the plant when the seed germinates.” It is thus more appealing to the farmer. Spraying cycles are less frequent and the pesticide kills all unwanted pests: “any insect which chews or sucks on the plant ingests the pesticide and dies.” The problem here of course lies in selectivity: how does one save the good bugs from the bad bugs?

How does a bee keeper keep his bees from pollinating pesticide-treated corn in the hundreds of acres surrounding their beehive? The answer is quite simple. He cannot. We cannot. As Dave Hackenberg , Pennsylvania’s largest bee keeper explains in a phone interview on October 17, 2011: “you can’t build a fence around [the bees] like you would with a cow […] The honeybees are going to fly for miles in each direction. The colonies are going to bring [neonicotinoids] home.” The problem with neonicotinoids is a complex one, as Hackenberg suggests in his interview with me: In researching the effects of one of the neonicotionoids, chlothianidin, Theobald points out that two thirds of the bee colonies of Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany, died in May 2008, 99% of them showing high levels of chlothianidin. It took Germany only two weeks to ban the chemical. Soon Italy and Slovenia followed suit. So why is the United States lagging in its response to banning it?

In researching the history of chlothianidin Theobald revealed the EPA scientists’ comments of February 2003: “This compound is toxic to honey bees. The persistence of residues and the expression of chlothianidin in nectar and pollen suggest the possibility of chronic toxic risk to honey bee larvae and the eventual stability of the hive.” And yet the pesticide was approved by the EPA for use. In April 2003, the EPA gave a registration to Bayer , the manufacturing company, that was conditional on its completion of a chronic honey bee study recommended by EPA scientists that would evaluate and confirm the possibility of toxicity. In 2008, the results of the Bayer study, held under wraps since 2006, were made public. They showed bees had been unaffected by the use of chlothianidin. As Tom Theobald points out in “Pesticide Blowout,” “four colonies of bees were set in the middle of one hectare [..] of canola planted from treated seed, with the bees free to forage over thousands of surrounding acres in bloom with untreated canola, which they surely did. What do you think the results were?

They were exactly what Bayer wanted, of course.” On December 8, 2010, representatives from several beekeeping associations wrote a letter to the EPA highlighting the “imminent hazard” posed by chlothianidin and requesting that the EPA issue a “stop use order.” The EPA responded in February 2011 that the “imminent hazard” was not supported by data, evidence, or explanation: there was no case for issuing a “stop use order.” The outcome: the pesticide is still on the market, waiting until 2012 for the EPA to assess the hazard it poses to honey bees. In Europe, the ban seems to have been rapid and efficient. In the United States, the battle to ban chlothianidin remains an uphill one. by flv2105 . A dramatic decline in honey bee colonies, the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), is puzzling the scientific community worldwide: why this sudden decline? Photo by Fiamma van Biema In the Hudson Valley we look forward with anticipation to the vibrant colors of the Fall and to the apple harvest. After all, New York is the apple state.

Yet we never realize that the harvest depends in great part on the successful work of a small and industrious insect, the honey bee. Honey bees, that flit from flower to flower in early spring, are responsible, says Renee Johnson , a specialist in agricultural policy, for the pollination of one third of the U.S. diet and are the most economically valuable pollinators of crops worldwide. The value of this productivity is estimated at $15-20 billion per year in the United States alone and $215 billion worldwide. In fact a number of crops is entirely dependent on honey bee pollination and among these are apples and almonds. Since late March 2006 entire colonies of honey bees are disappearing. According to Johnson, in her article “Honey bee Colony Collapse Disorder,” the dramatic decline of bee colonies is not attributable to an identifiable biological agent. The disappearance of the bees is not seasonal; it occurs year-round. Bees are behaving uncharacteristically: they fail to return to their own hives; adult worker bees disappear rapidly and suddenly; hives are abandoned still replete with pollen and honey, food that neighboring colonies fail to forage. It is not uncommon for bee colonies to undergo population losses.

As Sandler points out, colonies in the past have suffered from bee pests, parasitic mites (such as the Varroa destructor and the tracheal mite (Acaparis woodi)), bacterial diseases such as European Foul Brood and American Foul Brood, and loss of habitat. Losses have been attributed as well to the appearance of invasive plants that reduce nectar producing vegetation. Today, however, this significant decline, known as the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), remains puzzling and for the most part unexplained. As Johnson points out, there is a general agreement in the scientific community that “no single factor alone is responsible [for CCD and that it may be] a syndrome caused by many different factors, working in combination or synergistically.” Globally researchers and apiarists have been struggling to solve the mystery of CCD. Among them, Dennis John Haverkamp, master bee keeper of the Bedford Bee Honeybee Service , a service that began as a response to the colony collapse disorder, is doing research on a local level. In an interview on October 10, 2011, DJ agrees that CCD is a complex phenomenon attributable to any number of problems including stress.

During the three weeks of the February and March pollination season of the California almond groves, commercial bees undergo a remarkable level of stress. As Sandler comments, “like an accountant during tax time, the bees become tired and more susceptible to health problems.” Fifteen years ago, DJ points out that bees were not trucked cross country as readily as they today. Today, over 1 million bees from colonies all over the US are used to pollinate the almond trees of the San Joachim Valley. These commercial pollinators are now transported in trucks in large colonies across the continent and are never allowed to adapt to one environment. They are fed corn syrup for weeks and then are put to work in the California almond groves where they feed exclusively off of almond flowers throughout the pollinating season. As DJ explains. “You are feeding bees almond flower diet for three weeks straight, and […] on the truck the nutritional quality is poor. […] We are pushing bees to the limit of what they can do.” When pollinating crops in the Midwest, bees suffer as well from the consequences of the massive herbicide treatment that farmers use to enhance their yield. The herbicide Roundup kills all weeds except for the crop of choice the farmers are cultivating.

As DJ notes, this destruction of weeds on whose pollen the bees would feed, spells nutritional depletion: “Nothing is left for [all] pollinators and [in particular] bees to feed on.” As with herbicides, fungicides are also correlated with the decline of honeybee colonies. DJ points to the important role of fungus in the hive: “the pollen is broken down by the fungus inside the hive. This process may be breaking down because of the presence of fungicides in the environment.” Adding to the stress stemming from transit and nutrition, bees are particularly vulnerable in DJ’s view, as they lack genetic diversity: In an effort to address on a very local level a large global disorder, DJ focuses on educating the public and raising and nurturing locally adapted queen honey bees in the Hudson Valley. Photo by Fiamma van Biema In apple country, once you have picked all the apples you can by hand, you take a long hoe and shake the branches. So go out and shake the branches and let me know how well the honey bees toiled last spring.

Cause Of Colony Collapse Disorder Found: It's You | Care2 Causes About Piper Follow Piper at @ piperhoffman Bees are in crisis, experts aren’t sure exactly how to save them, and without them our food supply will shrink by a lot . Not good. The crisis is called Colony Collapse Disorder. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency describes it: During the winter of 2006-2007, some beekeepers began to report unusually high losses of 30-90 percent of their hives. As many as 50 percent of all affected colonies demonstrated symptoms inconsistent with any known causes of honeybee death: sudden loss of a colonyï¿½s worker bee population with very few dead bees found near the colony. The queen and brood (young) remained, and the colonies had relatively abundant honey and pollen reserves. But hives cannot sustain themselves without worker bees and would eventually die. This combination of events resulting in the loss of a bee colony has been called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). 40 to 50 percent of commercial beekeepers’ hives have succumbed to CCD. This isn’t bad news only for bees and the people who make money off of them.

It is also bad news for any humans who eat food . By that I mean “ cashews, beets, broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, chestnuts, watermelons, cucumber, fennel, strawberries, macadamia, mangoes, apricots, almonds,” and dozens of others.ï¿½Without bees to pollinate plants, some crops will be in mighty short supply. Even if you don’t give a hoot about bumblebees (or brussels sprouts), you have a very strong incentive to care about this disorder. Theories about the cause of CCD include: pesticides in or on the plants that bees like, as explained by Care2 Causes’ Beth Buczynski; bees absorbing metal pollution from flowers that absorbed it from the soil that absorbed it from modern machines and vehicles, as Care2 Causes’ Kristina Chew explains; and an increase in the population of a mite that preys on bees. The theory that makes the most sense to me is less speculative. When beekeepers steal bees’ honey so you can eat it , they are taking away the insects’ food. They replace it with high-fructose corn syrup , leaving the bees malnourished and weakening their immune systems .

It would be like removing all fruits and vegetables from your diet and replacing them with Pez. I know, you’re thinking that you don’t eat enough produce as it is and you’re fine. Me too. But we’re not fine, we’re just falling apart more slowly than bees do. Researchers have identified some specific nutrients that bees need, get from honey, and don’t get from corn syrup: When honeybees collect nectar from flowers, they also gather pollen and a substance called propolis, which they use to make waxy honeycombs. The pollen and propolis are loaded with three types of compounds that University of Illinois entomologists discovered can help the bees detoxify their cells and protect themselves from pesticides and microbes. Those compounds are p-coumaric acid , and two others found in the sap of poplars.

Pesticides (including some applied inside the hive to keep mites out) and metal pollution may very well play a role in CCD, but they would not wreak the same havoc if bees were healthier.ï¿½ï¿½If youï¿½re feeding them high-fructose corn syrup, then pathogens may be more dangerous and pesticides can be more toxic,ï¿½ according to the lead author of the study identifying high-fructose corn syrup as the cause of CCD. I think there is a law that scientists can’t publish a study without warning that (1) more research is needed ; (2) the study found correlation, not causation; or (3) their academic conclusions won’t be available as practical, real-world solutions for many years. These researchers went with number three :ï¿½ï¿½thereï¿½s a big gap between a scientific finding and practical application,ï¿½ the lead author told the Los Angeles Times . The European Union, in its typically upstart style , decided to do some applying anyway, but unfortunately it chose to address only one part of the problem: pesticides . Last month it restricted the use of three pesticides on crops bees rely on for nectar. The restrictions expire in two years.

Predictably, scientists wailed that there is too little evidence to take action. But what is the harm in restricting some pesticides temporarily? If they call it a research experiment maybe everyone will feel better — except for the pesticide manufacturers, which are pitching fits at the EU. In the meantime, let’s all follow the EU’s devil-may-care brashness by applying scientific findings right now. Stop eating honey. Bees cook it up for themselves, not for you. What they make for you is all those other yummy foods listed above. So leave them the honey and have some strawberries. Colony Collapse Disorder Causes - How Colony Collapse Disorder Works | HowStuffWorks How Colony Collapse Disorder Works © iStockphoto /Vlado Janzekovi Researchers have sifted through the list of possible Colony Collapse Disorder causes extensively during the past few years and haven't come up with one definitive answer. They have a few promising leads, however, and several factors yet to study. At this point, the evidence seems to be leaning to the theory that CCD is caused by a couple of factors working in tandem. Here are some of the suspects who might share responsibility for Colony Collapse Disorder. Up Next Do female praying mantises decapitate their mates?

Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV): This virus , first discovered by Israeli scientists in 2002, causes trembling, paralysis and death in bees . The virus has been found in many of the colonies abandoned by bees, but is also, on rare occasion, present in healthy colonies. As such, it's being considered a possible trigger or marker of CCD, but perhaps not its overriding cause. Recently, a study introduced IAPV into a healthy beehive that was enclosed in a greenhouse. Bees began dying within a week. Interestingly, researchers saw some of the functioning bees hauling the paralyzed bees out of the hive, as far away as the greenhouse would allow. The study's lead researcher said the results don't substantiate the theory that IAPV is the sole cause, but they do break promising ground. Neonicotinoid pesticides: These pesticides -- including clothianidin -- are neurotoxins used to protect crops against pests. But, these chemicals may also be harming helpful pollinators. The EPA has noted clothianidin as highly toxic to honeybees, and many beekeepers in Germany are blaming it for the massive die-off rates that struck their colonies in May 2008.

Scientists say early results aren't conclusive; tests on the dead bees found fairly low-level traces of the pesticide in nearly every instance. In theory, however, the insecticide could paralyze the bees while they're out collecting nectar. Stress: Modern life may be more than some bees can handle. Researchers are looking to see if the pressures of being a 21st-century bee might be taking its toll. Many beekeepers are stretching the pollination season, giving their bees less time off to recuperate in the winter before hauling them to a new crop. Recent droughts can make finding an adequate amount of nectar a challenge for overworked foragers. These stressors, combined with factors like poor nutrition, could disrupt the bees' immune systems, making them more susceptible to disease. Varroa mites: These parasitic creatures suck the bees' blood , leaving open wounds that can then become infected. The mites deprive bees of nutrition, as well as open the door for other pathogens to enter. Varroa mites, as well as other nasty mites, pathogens and fungi, can invade a hive and give the bees a run for their money.

Other factors under the magnifying glass include the chance that other (possibly unknown) pathogens or microorganisms are involved, or that honeybees might be lacking in genetic diversity. Some people have proposed that genetically modified crops are to blame, but this idea isn't high on the list of likely causes. One theory -- that cell phone and cell tower radiation are the culprits -- has been ruled out. While it seems like there's a perfect storm of dangerous elements descending on bees, what makes matters worse is that bee populations frequently come into contact with one another. Some beekeepers try to keep their colonies isolated from other hives during pollination events to prevent any dangerous exposure from ailing hives. So now that we've looked at some of the factors that could be causing Colony Collapse Disorder, let's take a look at what's being done to find some answers. Colony Collapse Disorder - UF/IFAS Extension: Solutions for Your Life Colony Collapse Disorder Why Are Honey Bees Disappearing? Through the years, U.S. beekeepers have faced obstacles to healthy bee management. Now, colony collapse disorder (CCD) threatens honey bees. What Is Colony Collapse Disorder?

Since 2006, beekeepers have reported higher-than-normal colony losses, which are called colony collapse disorder. Bee colonies affected by CCD can appear healthy, but then the adult bees disappear from the colonies. Collapsed Colonies Contain no adult bees, with few to no dead bees around the colony Contain capped brood Contain food stores that are not taken by neighboring bees or colony pests Collapsing Colonies Do not have enough bees to maintain colony brood Have a workforce that consists of younger adult bees Contain a queen Are reluctant to eat food provided by the beekeeper What Causes CCD? In past decades, colonies have died in connection with symptoms similar to those of CCD. These historic occurrences may not share a common cause with modern-day CCD, but they do share its symptoms. The cause of CCD has not been determined, and every realistic cause remains a possibility. The following list of causes, which is not in a particular order, is not comprehensive—it may change based on new research. For more detailed information about each possible cause, see the original publication, Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in Honey Bees . Traditional bee pests and diseases.

While these are most likely not responsible for CCD— because they do not produce the symptoms—they may intensify the problem. Bee management. Hive management varies among beekeepers, but poor management can make any colony problem worse. Queen source. Queens affect genetic diversity and bee lineage. Across the nation, only a few breeder queens are used to produce queen bees (and therefore, all U.S. honey bees), which leads to poor genetic diversity. Chemical use in bee colonies. Chemicals used to treat bee diseases and pests have been found to have sub-lethal effects—even when used according to the label and management recommendations. Chemical toxins in the environment. Bees can be exposed to toxins while foraging, drinking contaminated water, or by inhaling them directly. Varroa mites and associated pathogens. Varroa mites remain the world's most destructive honey bee killer. The mites, the viruses they transmit, and the chemical treatment they require are considered possible causes of CCD. Nutrition. Malnutrition causes stress to bees, possibly weakening their immune systems. Undiscovered or new pests and diseases. Unidentified or recently introduced pests and pathogens are considered possible causes of CCD.

Many scientists believe that CCD is caused by a combination of the above factors. This combination effect makes CCD more difficult to study. What Does CCD Mean for Us? Most people recognize the importance of honey bees and associate them with honey production. However, honey production is of minor importance compared to bees' role in pollination. Effects on Industry & Consumers Beekeepers who keep bees for pollination load their colonies on trucks and move them around the country to pollinate crops. Growers pay beekeepers to bring honey bees to their fields to ensure adequate pollination of their crops. In return, the growers benefit through higher crop production per acre, larger size and better product shape, and even enhanced product taste. US agriculture depends on honey bee pollination. No one expects bees to disappear altogether, but if bees continue to die at the current rates, we may experience increased food prices and decreased food availability. Signs of Environmental Problems Honey bees are biological indicators, meaning that honey bee health reflects the general health of the environment. Bee losses are possibly a symptom of a much greater environmental problem. Searching for Solutions Beekeepers, governmental officials, and scientists from universities, industries, and the USDA have initiated a number of investigations into the possible causes of CCD.

It is safe to assume that most potential causes of CCD are being investigated. Many granting agencies have realized the importance of honey bees and have distributed research funds in an effort to find the cause and a cure. What Can Beekeepers Do? Although the causes of colony collapse disorder are not yet known, the following recommendations may provide beekeepers with some options: Do not combine collapsing colonies with healthy ones. If you find abandoned hive equipment, and the cause of bee death is suspicious, store the equipment so other bees cannot live in it. Do not reuse this equipment. Use an integrated pest management (IPM) approach for varroa control in honey bee colonies. This will minimize bee exposure to potentially toxic chemicals. Keep colonies strong by practicing best management practices . Contact your local Extension agent for more information about CCD, honey bees, or beekeeping in general. Adapted and excerpted from: J. Ellis, Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in Honey Bees (ENY-150) , UF/IFAS Entomology and Nematology Department (rev. 09/2013). Related Sites & Articles

Question: What animal has suffered from colony collapse disorder?
Answer: Bees