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Dick, I have been remiss in not sending the stuff to naturens that you sent
me a while ago, since I have lately been swamped with stuff and will have t=
o
search for your inputs. Thanks for those, and I'm sure I can find them
buried in my inbox. The rest of you be patient please.
Cheers from Jim
----------
From: Richard Rogers <drogers@wildwoodlabs.com>
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2007 11:16:19 -0300
To: Jim Wolford <jimwolford@eastlink.ca>
Subject: Re: FW: [NatureNS] Colony Collapse Disorder
Hi Jim,
There seems to be a lot of discussion by none bee people about this issue.
Did you circulate my input on this topic to the NatureNS list? I don't min=
d
if you do. I tried to provide input based on my extensive experience with
studying bee health and bee losses over the past seven years.
There is no question that honey bees, and pollinators in general, are in
trouble, but the causes are not mysterious. What is being called CCD is no=
t
the same set of symptoms that are seen associated with most of the colony
losses, but the factors involved are probably a specific mix of factors
already known to impact bee health in a negative way.
The hype, or hysteria, over CCD is, in my opinion, being used to leverage
government funding for bee/pollinator research. More funding is not a bad
thing, but it is coming as a result of propaganda that is causing mass
hysteria.=20
Just my thoughts on the matter.
Regards,
Dick
--=20
R.E.L. (Dick) Rogers, MSc, PAg, PhD Candidate
Wildwood Labs Inc
NS, Canada
Skype: wildwoodlabs
902.679.2818 (Can)
707.709.8775 (US)
drogers@wildwoodlabs.com
www.wildwoodlabs.com <http://www.wildwoodlabs.com>
On 6/22/07, Jim Wolford <jimwolford@eastlink.ca> wrote:
----------
From: Kent Mullin <kmullin@ns.sympatico.ca>
Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 22:06:57 -0300
To: naturens <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca>
Subject: Re: [NatureNS] Colony Collapse Disorder
Hi Dave & All,
You're not alone, I'm no honeybee expert
either.
Not quite. While the hive or colony is
socially, very highly organized, the skillsets are not individually
limited, but rather evolve as a function of age. It would seem that
they are genetically coded. All worker bees are sterile females and
they form the majority of the hives population. The youngest are
called house or hive bees and their job is hive construction and
maintenance. They make new combs, tend the brood, see to the needs of
the queen and drones, receive nectar, pollen and other supplies from
the foragers and store the same, make honey by evaporating water from
stored nectar (by vibrating their wings over the nectar storage
cells), clean up generally and otherwise maintain the hive.
As workers grow older they become field
bees or foragers. Their function then is to range outside of the
hive, foraging for nectar, pollen, water and particular plant resins
necessary for hive construction. The average life span of a
summertime honeybee is about six weeks. As the number of foraging
bees diminishes, the oldest of the younger bees replace them in their
duties; So job function cycles through the population according to age.
Yes large forager losses, that outstrip
the ability of the queen and the brood stock to replace the necessary
workforce, can indeed cause hive collapse, but through starvation,
not through inharmonious social imbalance.
A single beehive may contain between
50,000 and 80,000 bees. In areas where large scale agriculture is
prevalent, it is not uncommon for thousands of hectares under
cultivation to contain thousands of hives, within foraging distance
of highways. While excessive "bee-napping" can be a serious problem
for vehicles, it has little effect on the operation of the hives.
Just a few bees from each hive can create mayhem for an awful lot of
vehicles.
The reason for the public to be concerned
about CCD: Agricultural practices over the latter half of the
Twentieth Century have reduced the population of indigenous
pollinators in North America through the use of pesticides and the
commercial use of honeybees as crop pollinators. The use of honeybees
brought increased competition for resources to the native
pollinators, thus further reducing the already depressed population.
With reliance now so heavy on honeybees as pollinators, any serious
reduction in their numbers would have devastating effects on North
American Agriculture, and therefore have serious implications for the
North American population at large.
Further to the CCD article: Paragraph
one indicates that there has been no confirmation of CCD in Canada as
of June 2007, yet there are reports from New Brunswick (Apr. 10th
2007) of major losses in that province, with the president of the NB
Beekeepers Assoc. losing 80% of his hives. Each of the affected hives
had only a small number of dead bees with the majority of the hive
population absent. Sounds like CCD to me.
If I were to offer a guess, I would
recommend looking at GM crops, particularly those
containing genes to protect against insect attack. But that's only a
guess from here and I'm miles away from the problem.
Further to paragraph three of my initial
comment: One note of interest is that when nectar is reduced into
honey, all of the constituents that were dilute, including any
contaminants, are then concentrated. Therefore an inhibitor that
might not be noticed by the foragers at the nectar gathering stage
might well be repulsive in the hive at the honey stage.
Kent
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------
Dave Webster wrote:
Hi Kent & All, June 20, 2007
I know practically nothing about Honey Bees but understand that a
hive population is a highly organized social structure with skills
for the various specialized functions being imprinted early in
development.=20
If it is true that bees can not readily adapt to changes in hive
composition, then could not sufficient loss of forager bees cause the
hive system to go into a tailspin ?
In 1962, when we drove across the U.S. in August, we were
cautioned in some western states (Utah, Montana and Idaho ?) to clean
our radiator of bees before going up mountains. Apparently a lot of
vehicles in that area were getting bees on their radiators, leading
to overheated cooling systems and unscheduled stops. Bees then, were
a local problem to motor vehicles.
With many more motor vehicles now on more roads, could motor
vehicles now be a widespread problem to bees ?
Yt, Dave Webster, Kentville
--
NOTE: This e-mail message is intended only for the named recipient(s) above
and may contain information that is privileged, confidential and/or exempt
from disclosure under applicable law. If you have received this message in
error, or are not the named recipient(s), please immediately notify the
sender and delete this e-mail message.
NOTE: Ce courriel est destin=E9 exclusivement au(x) destinataire(s)
mentionn=E9(s) ci-dessus et peut contenir de l'information privil=E9gi=E9e,
confidentielle et/ou dispens=E9e de divulgation aux termes des lois
applicables. Si vous avez re=E7u ce message par erreur, ou s'il ne vous est
pas destin=E9, veuillez le mentionner imm=E9diatement =E0 l'exp=E9diteur et effacer
ce courriel.
--=20
--Boundary_(ID_SjUhL+3Y6zGpKAP1lpHXLA)
Content-type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>FW: [NatureNS] Colony Collapse Disorder</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
Dick, I have been remiss in not sending the stuff to naturens that you sent=
me a while ago, since I have lately been swamped with stuff and will have t=
o search for your inputs. Thanks for those, and I'm sure I can find th=
em buried in my inbox. The rest of you be patient please. <BR>
<BR>
Cheers from Jim<BR>
----------<BR>
<B>From: </B>Richard Rogers <drogers@wildwoodlabs.com><BR>
<B>Date: </B>Fri, 22 Jun 2007 11:16:19 -0300<BR>
<B>To: </B>Jim Wolford <jimwolford@eastlink.ca><BR>
<B>Subject: </B>Re: FW: [NatureNS] Colony Collapse Disorder<BR>
<BR>
Hi Jim,<BR>
<BR>
There seems to be a lot of discussion by none bee people about this issue. =
Did you circulate my input on this topic to the NatureNS list? I=
don't mind if you do. I tried to provide input based on my extensive =
experience with studying bee health and bee losses over the past seven years=
. <BR>
<BR>
There is no question that honey bees, and pollinators in general, are in tr=
ouble, but the causes are not mysterious. What is being called CCD is =
not the same set of symptoms that are seen associated with most of the colon=
y losses, but the factors involved are probably a specific mix of factors al=
ready known to impact bee health in a negative way. <BR>
<BR>
The hype, or hysteria, over CCD is, in my opinion, being used to leverage g=
overnment funding for bee/pollinator research. More funding is not a b=
ad thing, but it is coming as a result of propaganda that is causing mass hy=
steria. <BR>
<BR>
Just my thoughts on the matter.<BR>
<BR>
Regards,<BR>
<BR>
Dick<BR>
<BR>
-- <BR>
R.E.L. (Dick) Rogers, MSc, PAg, PhD Candidate<BR>
Wildwood Labs Inc<BR>
NS, Canada<BR>
Skype: wildwoodlabs<BR>
902.679.2818 (Can)<BR>
707.709.8775 (US)<BR>
drogers@wildwoodlabs.com<BR>
www.wildwoodlabs.com <http://www.wildwoodlabs.com> <BR>
<BR>
On 6/22/07, <B>Jim Wolford</B> <jimwolford@eastlink.ca> wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE><BR>
----------<BR>
From: Kent Mullin <kmullin@ns.sympatico.ca><BR>
Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca<BR>
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 22:06:57 -0300 <BR>
To: naturens <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca><BR>
Subject: Re: [NatureNS] Colony Collapse Disorder<BR>
<BR>
Hi Dave & All,<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
You're not alone, I'm no honeybee expert <BR>
either.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
Not quite. While the hive or colony is<BR>
socially, very highly organized, the skillsets are not individually<BR>
limited, but rather evolve as a function of age. It would seem that <BR>
they are genetically coded. All worker bees are sterile females and<BR>
they form the majority of the hives population. The youngest are<BR>
called house or hive bees and their job is hive construction and<BR>
maintenance. They make new combs, tend the brood, see to the needs of <BR>
the queen and drones, receive nectar, pollen and other supplies from<BR>
the foragers and store the same, make honey by evaporating water from<BR>
stored nectar (by vibrating their wings over the nectar storage<BR>
cells), clean up generally and otherwise maintain the hive. <BR>
&n=
bsp; =
As workers grow older they become field<BR>
bees or foragers. Their function then is to range outside of the<BR>
hive, foraging for nectar, pollen, water and particular plant resins<BR>
necessary for hive construction. The average life span of a <BR>
summertime honeybee is about six weeks. As the number of foraging<BR>
bees diminishes, the oldest of the younger bees replace them in their<BR>
duties; So job function cycles through the population according to age.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
Yes large forager losses, that outstrip<BR>
the ability of the queen and the brood stock to replace the necessary<BR>
workforce, can indeed cause hive collapse, but through starvation,<BR>
not through inharmonious social imbalance. <BR>
&n=
bsp; =
A single beehive may contain between<BR>
50,000 and 80,000 bees. In areas where large scale agriculture is<BR>
prevalent, it is not uncommon for thousands of hectares under<BR>
cultivation to contain thousands of hives, within foraging distance <BR>
of highways. While excessive "bee-napping" can be a serious probl=
em<BR>
for vehicles, it has little effect on the operation of the hives.<BR>
Just a few bees from each hive can create mayhem for an awful lot of <BR>
vehicles.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
The reason for the public to be concerned<BR>
about CCD: Agricultural practices over the latter half of the<BR>
Twentieth Century have reduced the population of indigenous<BR>
pollinators in North America through the use of pesticides and the <BR>
commercial use of honeybees as crop pollinators. The use of honeybees<BR>
brought increased competition for resources to the native<BR>
pollinators, thus further reducing the already depressed population.<BR>
With reliance now so heavy on honeybees as pollinators, any serious <BR>
reduction in their numbers would have devastating effects on North<BR>
American Agriculture, and therefore have serious implications for the<BR>
North American population at large.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
Further to the CCD article: Paragraph <BR>
one indicates that there has been no confirmation of CCD in Canada as<BR>
of June 2007, yet there are reports from New Brunswick (Apr. 10th<BR>
2007) of major losses in that province, with the president of the NB<BR>
Beekeepers Assoc. losing 80% of his hives. Each of the affected hives <BR>
had only a small number of dead bees with the majority of the hive<BR>
population absent. Sounds like CCD to me.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
If I were to offer a guess, I would<BR>
recommend looking at GM crops, particularly those <BR>
containing genes to protect against insect attack. But that's only a<BR>
guess from here and I'm miles away from the problem.<BR>
&n=
bsp; =
Further to paragraph three of my initial<BR>
comment: One note of interest is that when nectar is reduced in=
to <BR>
honey, all of the constituents that were dilute, including any<BR>
contaminants, are then concentrated. Therefore an inhibitor that<BR>
might not be noticed by the foragers at the nectar gathering stage<BR>
might well be repulsive in the hive at the honey stage. <BR>
<BR>
Kent<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR=
>
-------------------------------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Dave Webster wrote:<BR>
<BR>
Hi Kent & All, &n=
bsp; June 20, 2007 <BR>
I know practically nothing about Honey Bees but understand that a<BR>
hive population is a highly organized social structure with skills<BR>
for the various specialized functions being imprinted early in<BR>
development. <BR>
<BR>
If it is true that bees can not readily adapt to changes=
in hive<BR>
composition, then could not sufficient loss of forager bees cause the<BR>
hive system to go into a tailspin ?<BR>
<BR>
In 1962, when we drove across the U.S. in August, we wer=
e<BR>
cautioned in some western states (Utah, Montana and Idaho ?) to clean<BR>
our radiator of bees before going up mountains. Apparently a lot of<BR>
vehicles in that area were getting bees on their radiators, leading <BR>
to overheated cooling systems and unscheduled stops. Bees then, were<BR>
a local problem to motor vehicles.<BR>
<BR>
With many more motor vehicles now on more roads, could m=
otor<BR>
vehicles now be a widespread problem to bees ? <BR>
<BR>
Yt, Dave Webster, Kentville<BR>
</BLOCKQUOTE><BR>
<BR>
--<BR>
NOTE: This e-mail message is intended only for the named recipient(s) above=
<BR>
and may contain information that is privileged, confidential and/or exempt =
<BR>
from disclosure under applicable law. If you have received this messa=
ge in<BR>
error, or are not the named recipient(s), please immediately notify the<BR>
sender and delete this e-mail message.<BR>
<BR>
NOTE: Ce courriel est destin=E9 exclusivement au(x) destinataire(s) <BR>
mentionn=E9(s) ci-dessus et peut contenir de l'information privil=E9gi=E9e,<BR>
confidentielle et/ou dispens=E9e de divulgation aux termes des lois<BR>
applicables. Si vous avez re=E7u ce message par erreur, ou s'il ne vous=
est <BR>
pas destin=E9, veuillez le mentionner imm=E9diatement =E0 l'exp=E9diteur et effacer=
<BR>
ce courriel.<BR>
-- <BR>
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--Boundary_(ID_SjUhL+3Y6zGpKAP1lpHXLA)--
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