Review of Bee Health

Saving the Bees: Honeybee Populations on the Rise After Colony Collapse Disorder

From: Newsweek

By Janice Williams

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But newly released figures from the USDA indicate a break in that trend. Only about 84 colonies were lost in first quarter of 2017. That figure is 27 percent less than the number of colonies reported lost for the first quarter of 2016.

But the news isn’t completely rosy. Varrora mites, a parasite that lives inside beehives, are one of the many causes that researchers believe could be behind the losses. And the new report lists these mites as the top stressor responsible for lost colonies. The parasites, which survive by sucking insect blood, were reported in 42 percent of commercial bee hives. However, the department noted that instances of the varrora mites, which first started plaguing bee hives in 1987, were still down some 11 percent compared to the 53 percent of hives affected by the parasites the year before.

Leave a Comment August 3, 2017

Bees Are Bouncing Back From Colony Collapse Disorder

From: Bloomberg

By Alan Bjerga

• Colony Collapse Disorder losses are down 27% from 2016
• Varroa mite main scourge while beekeepers replenish hives

Leave a Comment August 2, 2017

A Threat to Science-Based Regulation

From: BNA Daily Environment Report

Bee Pesticide Ban Debate Could Arise in Next Farm Bill

By Tiffany Stecker

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Thirty-one Democrats are backing a bill—the Saving America’s Pollinators Act of 2017 ( H.R. 3040)—that would suspend the approval of neonicotinoid pesticides, common insect-killers that are said to harm honeybees, aquatic insects, birds, and other insects and animals. H.R. 3040 would ban imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiamethoxam, dinotefuran, and any other neonicotinoids until the Environmental Protection Agency can determine that the pesticides won’t harm pollinators, based on peer-reviewed studies.

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Leave a Comment August 1, 2017