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Where have all the Honey Bees gone ? | 33 comments (33 topical, 0 editorial)

Re: Where have all the Honey Bees gone ? (3.00 / 0) (#7)
by K3CZ on Sun May 4th, 2008 at 09:01:04 PM MST
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As a 40-year beekeeper (at the moment I have 8 colonies, but I have had as many as 40), I feel the need to make a comment or so. Where I live (in Maryland), my bees have come thru this past winter in better shape than any of the last several winters, with zero hives lost. According to research reports in the major trade journals, the problem seems to be mostly limited to large commercial beekeepers (mostly in the West) who are in the habit of moving large quantities of hives from place to place for crops and polination. The latest research has zeroed in on a combination of pathogens present for a long time that has been made worse by the stress brought on by all the moving around.
As they have demonstrated over and over in the past, the bees are tremendously adaptable, if we will just leave them alone for a few generations.
Regards, Van - K3CZ

Re: Where have all the Honey Bees gone ? (3.00 / 0) (#8)
by Ungrounded Lightning Rod on Sun May 4th, 2008 at 09:55:23 PM MST
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I hear it wasn't just any old pathogens - but one that showed up shortly after the US loosened the regulations or enforcement on importing bees.

[ Parent ]

Re: Where have all the Honey Bees gone ? (3.00 / 0) (#23)
by dalibor (mdalibor - at - gmail - com) on Tue May 6th, 2008 at 11:38:28 AM MST
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i was always confused - how all that moving around of beehives and bees doesnt do harm to them. i know about their ability to orientate, but moving them every few days somewhere else ... i find it confusing for those small hardworking bugs.

bee parasites live swith theirs hosts for eons - iamaffraid thatpolution is cousing much more damage to poor bees. how do they deal with lead and sulphur in air, plants, soil???

[ Parent ]

Where have all the Honey Bees gone ? | 33 comments (33 topical, 0 editorial)

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