Is our selfindulgence killing the bees?

It is a sign of the end times.

To bee or not to bee...that is the question.

 

Honey bees communicate food locations with a dance performed by the worker bees. They believe it's basis is neurological, but they're not sure. So maybe it's possible that the radiation is disrupting whatever mechanism is at work.

I believe different mechanisms may be at work. None of the articles that I read mentioned this but I'm wondering if inbreeding plays a role. The colonies are probably very isolated. Unless they import members of different colonies for breeding (and they may, I've no idea), they're bound to wind up with a colony that isn't equipped with a comprehensive immune system. The articles that I've read have mentioned that samplings of these bees showed almost every single virus known to inflict bees.

Whatever the cause, it's troubling. Bee colonies have suffered declines in the past, but nothing along this scale. They provide us with a lot of food that we eat, so it's really not something we should be taking lightly.

 

Bees are essential to food production, which should concern everyone. Here's a link to an article that suggests the decline may be caused by pesticides. http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2007/04...epesticide.html

 

This worry about the effects of electromagnetic radiation seems to resurface every year or so, always in some new pseudo-scientific costume: worry about living next to power stations or in close proximity to high tension transmission lines, worry about sleeping too close to a plug-in alarm clock, worry about cell-phones causing brain tumors, and now worry that the bees are being killed by a tidal wave of text messages.

Here's some context. Look up in the sky. That brilliant blazing blot of brightness you can't look at directly is the sun. We are immersed in the equivalent of a hurricane surf from that big guy, worrying that the ripples from dropping a pebble into the tumult are going to cause a problem.

Mark Baird
Alameda CA

 

The US is actually behind the curve when it comes to cell phone adoption. Europe and Japan are head of us. It should be starting there and spreading to us, not the other way around.

 

Cell-phone use is most common in cities. Most agriculture is outside of cities. Cell phones operate at fairly low power levels.

I think pesticides (and maybe herbicides) are a far more likely culprit.

 

I've heard the nicotine-based insecticide theory, too. I've also heard GMOs might be the culprit.

 

I'd also have to agree with Stev0. Anything genetically modified is going to drive the bees away from it, which will cause crops to fail.

Hopefully they'll get to the bottom of the situation and resolve it soon.

 

"The bee mortality rate in Swiss hives has been above average in recent years and it is still not known what is killing the insects, which are important for the ecosystem and the rural economy."

"Other countries, such as Spain, Germany and Britain, have also confirmed higher than average bee mortality rates, although not as high as in the US. The problem also affects Switzerland."

""But for about five to six years now this percentage has been higher. For example, in 2003 or 2006 it went up to 25 per cent," he added."

Concern mounts over falling bee population.

So it has been going on for years. And it is happening in Europe. Is it cell phones? Who knows. If it were, I doubt people would give up their cell phones so bees could live. They just don't get how the death of bees is going to drive up the cost of their favorite foods.

Death of bees

 

On a happier note, a wild swarm moved into a wall space next to my neighbor's garage (in downtown Boise) and have settled down to stay. We watch them and send many good vibes their way...and we're hoping for a great apple crop this year.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(screaming red @ Apr 18 2007, 12:08 AM) [snapback]425127[/snapback]</div>

Can they be relocated to a hive, rather than the garage wall? The wall space isn't the safest environment for them or for the owner. They don't have to be killed. A beekeeper might even take them for free.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Stev0 @ Apr 17 2007, 04:28 PM) [snapback]424957[/snapback]</div>

I very much doubt that bees can tell the difference, or are differently-affected by GMOs, unless the specific modification is for the natural production of an insecticide.

But Europe in general is very nagative towards GMOs, and if they are experiencing the same problem, then it's more likely to be some common factor, such as pesticides, or even just general environmental degredation.

 

Some GMO's are spliced with a pesticide gene that kills the insects that come in contact with them. If the bee comes into contact with the pollen of such a GMO, it's possible this could have a such a killing affect. Monarch butterflies are believed to be killed off by these crops as well.

We get to dine on them for dinner - yummy.

 

i would assume that the folks making GMOs are aware enough of the biology to understand that the crop relies on some insects to propagate, and wouldn't supply the plants with enzymes that make natural products (ie pesticides) that kill off the insects responsible for pollinating them.

but then again, maybe the long-term effects are understudied.

maybe we should be working on a tissue-specific knock-in of this gene, and excluding the pollen grains.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Apr 18 2007, 12:07 PM) [snapback]425395[/snapback]</div>

corn is the gmo crop in which they splice in bt, a naturally occurring organism in soils. It produces a protein that's deadly to insects en mass. Corn is self pollinating, so who needs those insects anyway?

And the term "understudied" is an understatement.

Part of the problem is that the companies propagating these GMO's are very powerful and have loads of money. There had been pressure on the FDA (don't know if it's still the case) by these companies to have "organic" labeling not exclude GMO's. Also, they muscle the small farmer who doesn't want to incorporate GMO's in their crops. Then there's the question of whether or not these GMO's can cross pollinate with non GMO's and infect our traditional varieties and whether or not GMO's are unhealthy to consume.

http://www.newstarget.com/021784.html

 

That is a particularly interesting statement. Too bad it did not say, "we removed the cell phones and the bees returned." I wonder if they did remove the phones and this article failed to report that fact.

It may be a multitude of things, and it could very well be true that cell phone radiation contributes to the problem.

Then again, I don't own a cell phone, and I, presently, do not see the need for one in my life.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Apr 18 2007, 10:07 AM) [snapback]425395[/snapback]</div>

As SSimon notes above, many crops are either self-pollinated, or wind-pollinated, and do not need insects. Companies developing GMOs for these crops will not be concerned about other crops growing nearby that depend on insects that may be killed by the former. However, I still think conventional insecticides are a more likely culprit in this case. See also my reply to SSimon, below:

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SSimon @ Apr 18 2007, 10:16 AM) [snapback]425402[/snapback]</div>

BT is a bacteria that infects leaf-chewing caterpillars and kills them by paralysing their digestive tract. BT does not infect other types of insects. If you are correct that they have isolated the gene that produces the toxin in BT, for insertion into GMO corn, that still should have no effect on bees.

There are two issues here: The companies developing GMOs tend to be extremely irresponsible. They promote their technology as offering ways to reduce chemical usage, but their biggest successes have been crops resistent to herbicides, allowing farmers to use more chemicals. They have also sued farmers who use conventional seeds, when neighboring GMO fields have infected the non-GMO field. The companies argue that if the farmer now plants his own open-pollinated seeds, he is "stealing" their patented GMO. What has happened instead is that the GMO has trespassed on the non-GMO field. It's like when a burgler breaks into your house, trips and falls in the dark, and then sues you. These companies are more vicious than a doberman.

But the separate issue is whether GMOs are different enough to be killing off the bees. And the fact that Europe has not adopted GMOs, but is experiencing the same bee die-off as we are, suggests that in this case GMOs are probably not the culprit.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daniel @ Apr 18 2007, 08:12 PM) [snapback]425674[/snapback]</div>

and the data backs that up, with one exception. i put this in bold below.

http://www.gmo-safety.eu/en/safety_science/68.docu.html
funded by the federal ministry of education and research, btw, not by industry.

Testing the effect of Bt maize pollen in the field
In the first year the bee colonies happened to be infested with parasites (microsporidia). This infestation led to a reduction in the number of bees and subsequently to reduced broods in the Bt-fed colonies as well as in the colonies fed on Bt-toxin-free pollen. The trial was therefore discontinued at an early stage.
This effect was significantly more marked in the Bt-fed colonies. (The significant differences indicate an interaction of toxin and pathogen on the epithelial cells of the honeybee intestine. The underlying mechanism which causes this effect is unknown.)
It was not possible to investigate the influence of microsporidia further since the attempt to breed them failed, making targeted infection of bee colonies impossible.
When the trial was repeated the colonies were treated prophylactically with antibiotics to prevent re-infection. No differences in brood care behaviour or in larva development were established in this trial. In the first four weeks the number of adult bees fell more sharply than in the control colonies. However, no further differences were established after this initial phase.

 

Maybe it's not the cell phones but the "towers" that are the relay transmitters. (or whatever they're called.)

Isn't there a question about high intensity power lines effecting them?

Just as sonar is impacting whales and dolphins, perhaps some frequencies, waves, radiation or whatnot is having an impact on the bees.