The Vanishing of the Bees

The Vanishing of the Bees-Everyone Should be Concerned

August 2010

 Jay Burney w/ thanks to Judy Einach

As many people know, honeybees and other pollinators worldwide are struggling to survive in our modern world of agricultural chemicals and practices. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) which is resulting in a disappearance of bees, has become a major concern for growers, scientists, and the USDA.  It should be a concern of everyone.

Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is the name of the stunning decline of honeybees around the world.  First noticed in North America in 2006, reports of vanishing bees have been reported in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Central and South America, Australia, and Asia.

According to the USDA Agricultural Research Service  (USDA ARS) in 2009, for the fourth year in a row, more than 1/3 of 551,000 of U.S. honeybee hives failed to survive the winter.  Some northeast beekeepers have reported as much as 2/3 of their population failed to survive between May 2009 and April 2010. Some American beekeepers have reported losses of 100%.

Honeybees as pollinators are an especially significant part of our food system.  They have a consequential economic and ecological value.  As honeybees and other pollinator species continue to disappear, our food security is at risk.  For instance, about 90% of all crops in North America and in WNY rely on honeybee pollination. That is a huge chunk of our food supply.  According to the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the bee pollination business is responsible for $15 billion in added crop value nationwide. Beekeeping and pollinating is a big business.

Ecologically, pollinators are responsible for the reproduction of many of our native plants, which are food sources for a variety of beneficial native animals including butterflies and birds. Loss of these pollinators means habitat loss and the potential collapse of ecosystems. Without pollinators, many plants cannot reproduce, provide food sources, and promote the biodiversity of which our planets health, ecology, and food systems depend upon.

The specific causes of CCD have been linked to human made toxins that are ingested by honeybees as part of their natural life cycle. These toxins include commonly used pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, paints, solvent, yard and farm chemicals, and GMO’s (genetically modified organisms).  They get these poisons from plants, flowers, nectar, pollen, leaf litter, water, hives, dirt, other animals, and a wide variety of other sources.

More and more it is becoming obvious that the toxics absorbed by pollinators, often in unknown combinations, have created weakened immune systems and biological collapses that leave the pollinators vulnerable to viruses and other predators.

A recent study conducted by Penn State University published in the Public Library of Science (High Levels of Miticides and Agrochemicals in North American Apiaries: Implications for Honey Bee health) found widespread and “remarkably high” levels of pesticides and other toxicant contamination of beehives and food sources including fungicides in pollen.  Dr. Chris Mullen, lead author of the study said “The pollen is not in good shape.  The study reports that 121 pesticides and metabolites have been found in wax, pollen, bee, and hive samples.

These toxins, combined in unexpected ways may be leading to pollinator’s with weakened immune systems that are allowing disease to infiltrate bodies and colonies. 

In recent decades global agribusiness has ushered the emergence of large, concentrated, single crop farming operations. This has hastened the decline of the small family farm and its multiple crops and often more diversified approach as a fundamental part of the food industry. Increasingly growers large and small have come to rely on chemical and GMO strategies to increase yield and to keep up with the demands of agribusiness.  Mix in the fundamental management technique involving pollination and bees and we begin to see substantial conflict.

Today it is becoming increasingly clear that chemical and GMO strategies are having unanticipated consequences regards pollinators. If we lose our pollinators, we lose our food supply. Food safety and security issues linked to these strategies are rapidly rising in our sustainable agricultural agenda.

What can you do?

Individuals and organizations can get involved in many ways.

-If you have a garden, whether you are urban or rural based, consider using less chemicals. We encourage the creation of organic pollinator pastures where pollinators can obtain food relatively free of contamination.

-Purchasing organic products and becoming aware of the widespread toxics contamination of many of our consumer oriented products are good steps.  Promote decreased use of Ag, lawn and garden chemicals, and encourage planting gardens and green space with insect friendly plants and gardening techniques. NYSAWG would be pleased to offer resources including staff interview and connections to WNY beekeepers and honey producers on these significant issues.