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5/27/2015 3:23:40 PM
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As a hobby bee keeper, I completely support this post.
However...I will have to correct you about your assertions about pesticides being the cause of colony collapse disorder (CCD).
CCD is a huge problem that is multi-factorial. The majority of the causes of CCD are man-made, but bug spray isn't the major or sole cause. To sum up the causes, we have created an environment where there are 3 major causes for CCD. We have allowed easy transmission of diseases within our bee population, we have changed the landscape where our bees feed, and we have intoxicated our bees.
1) We have created an environment where are bees are more susceptible to disease.
- [u]Commercial transport of bees:[/u] It has now been common practice for bee keepers to transport their hives all across the country to help pollinate cash crops. This nation wide transport of colonies speeds the spread of disease between colonies. It isn't uncommon for a commercial hive to be shipped from Florida to California to Washington St to Maine depending on the season to pollinate crops. As these colonies move, so do their diseases.
-[u]The use of wax foundation:[/u] Beekeepers have been using [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wax_foundation]wax foundation[/url] for a long time. The problem with using wax foundation is that pre-made cells on the wax foundation is designed to facilitate the growth of larger worker bees. This helps increase honey production...but the larger cells increases the growth of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varroa_destructor]varroa mite[/url]. Varroa mite is one or the primary transmitter of bee disease...
2) We have changed the landscape for the bees...
-[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monoculture]Mono-agriculture[/url] is probably the biggest problem for the bees. In the past, family farms would have several different crops growing on their farms. The bees would have different crops to feed from through out the year. With modern commercial agriculture, miles upon miles are planted with the same crop. These plants only flower for a short time, and when flowering is over the bees might as well be in a desert. With no other flowering plants within miles the bees have no other food sources.
-Urban bees have been surviving better than rural bees...this is because the variety of flowering plants in a city now vastly outnumbers that in a commercial agriculture setting.
3) Pesticides
--[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neonicotinoid]Neonicotinoids:[/url] These have been linked as a guilty party. They appear to interfere with the bees ability to navigate. It also builds up in their wax.
So, if you want to look at CCD objectively, pretend you're a bee forging for food. Your're starving due to current commercial mono-agricultural practices. You are sick due to Varroa mite infection. You're unsure where you are because you just got shipped from a California almond orchard to a Washington St apple orchard. You are drunk due to pesticides. How effective are you going to be?
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Buzz buzz Mr. Bee
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Huh. That's an unexpected hobby. You learn something new everyday.
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Well that's a hobby I haven't heard of before
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As a farm advisor in California I approve this message. Keep spreading the good word
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This is why I love you Bobcast. Not only is this extremely informative to people with little knowledge in regards to the plight of our buzzy friends, it's very well written. How'd you ever get into a hobby like Bee-keeping, anyway?
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I have no idea. Just happened.
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Edited by Recon Number 54: 5/27/2015 4:08:09 PMI've always been amazed how (like any localized agricultural crop) how different and varied honey can be. I grew up in Central Florida and most of the local honey was predominantly from the regions orange blossoms. Light, almost clear and very delicately flavored. I've had others where the local seller would label what was the most common source of nectar. Sunflowers, clover, etc. and found them all to be unique in color and taste. ALWAYS better than the blended, mixed and homogenized stuff you find in the supermarket. I was also surprised by how many firefighters (at least in the department I worked in) were beekeepers. If anyone finds a local honey producer, it's a great idea to buy from someone local and help support not only a local business, but someone and something that is benefiting your areas ecology.
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Edited by Tic Tac: 5/27/2015 5:54:31 PMIt benefits you also to buy local... It is a invaluable substance during allergy season. Locally sourced honey helps with local allergies. But never give honey to a infant under 1 year of age.
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This is great information. I'll also add and adjust this to OP accordingly when I have the opportunity. It gives me (and hopefully other users) insight on the direction we can take to prevent further degeneration of new populations. Are there any ways we, as civilians, can take steps against these factors?
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Sure can. If you don't have bees, plant bee friendly plants in your yard or flower beds. If you see a swarm, call a local beekeeper who doesn't ship hives and/or does everything local. If you a colony of bees on your property in a harmless place, like a tree cavity, leave them alone. If they are in a place they need removed, call the same person as before. If you keep bees as a hobby, don't ship your bees, go foundationless, buy local bees, and be active in your community to retrieve local swarms and collect local cut outs.
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So how do you find out if the bee keepers ship out or not? Simply ask them?
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Edited by bobcast: 5/27/2015 3:50:48 PMYep. Most keepers will tell you what they do. Also, most are easily found on google or facebook Hobby beekeepers are also typically (In my experience) willing to give up a colony to another beekeeper who shares their values than to let it go commercial. So if a keeper has more than they can handle at that moment, they would pass a swarm or cutout to someone they know who isn't going to ship it out.
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What's the difference between a swarm and a cutout? Presence of a queen?
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Nope. Both [i]should[/i] have one. A swarm of bees is when you a mass of bees that is in the process of a hive dividing. When an established colony becomes crowded, the bees will raise a new queen and the old queen will leave the hive with about half the bees to try and establish a new hive. [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJZOfkiT_aM]Here is a good example of a swarm collection.[/url] A cut out is when you have an established colony in a place that has high human activity and needs to be removed due to safety. [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6LXtonC7cE]Here is good ol JP with a cut out.[/url] I will say, this guy has so much more skill and balls than I do. He rarely wears a vail.
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Thanks, that was amazing. I learned something new today. [quote] [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6LXtonC7cE]Here is good ol JP with a cut out.[/url] I will say, this guy has so much more skill and balls than I do. He rarely wears a vail.[/quote]He is pretty impressive. I think that the bees pick up on his chill personality and I noticed that he makes calm, deliberate moves that have a certain pace to them. I am now trying to imagine being a bee that is sucked up by a vacuum.
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Edited by Recon Number 54: 5/27/2015 3:32:08 PM[quote] pretend you're a bee...[/quote] [quote]You're unsure where you are...[/quote] [quote]You are drunk..[/quote] [quote]How effective are you going to be?[/quote] About as effective as I am as a human, since I am in a very similar state.
