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| Honey bee covered in pollen |
As someone who's going to be starting her own hives shortly in the spring, CCD has always been in the back of my mind. Will I get it? Will my bees one day suddenly disappear? How will I know if it's a swarm or CCD? (I'm assuming in CCD, the queen is still in the hive with drones, just no workers).
It's up there with Varroa mite infestion in terms of worry. And I like to worry. Alot.
Anyhow, I was intrigued to see the article in the NY Times talking about a possible viral/fungus combo that may be the primary suspect for CCD. Almost as intrigued about the idea of the army and academics combining forces to squish bees for research. I'm not so keen on the squishing but understand why it has to be done. Something like 85% of our food production in this country requires the honey bee for pollination. So, yeah, it's a big deal.
The thing that was a bit of a downer was the part about them not being 100% sure that it's causing CCD, but rather, it's another suspect. I guess this is probably a bit of ass covering going on, and I can see why they say that. However, it's a good sign that they only find this combo in colonies with CCD so maybe we're finally getting somewhere before it becomes too late.
Interestingly enough, the ABJ, which I get as an electronic newsletter has just piped in on this new research -
ReplyDeleteDoes This Explain CCD In The USA?
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The samples analyzed in this study showed a wide range of pathogens, including Nosema, Invertebrate Iridescent Virus (“IIV”), Black Queen Cell Virus, Acute Bee Paralysis Virus, Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus, Deformed Wing Virus, Sac Brood Virus, Kashmir Bee Virus, Varroa Destructor-1 Virus, and Kakugo Virus. None of the suspect pathogens named by other research efforts were missed, two new and novel pathogens were found, and the use of MSP implies that no pathogens were overlooked. Even a new, unknown, and unnamed pathogen would have resulted in a partial peptide match to some other living thing.
So, while the counts or mix of pathogens might have been skewed by an insufficient number of samples, or collecting samples from an insufficient number of operations, it is difficult to imagine that there are additional pathogens yet to be found that could be implicated in CCD.
Insecurity About Biosecurity
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Since the 1980s, “Globalization” has increasingly consisted of shipments of goods from Asian ports to Western shores. This research connects the dots by consistently finding specific bee pathogens native to Asia, unknown to USA beekeepers in the early 1980s, but that have since become far too familiar:
“We know that in the Asian honey bee, Apis ceranae, a combination of parasites and pathogens co-exist, including: (1) Nosema ceranae, (2) an iridescent virus, (3) parasitic and predacious mites, and (4) two other RNA-type viruses, Kashmir bee virus and a Sacbrood virus. We have had both Kashmir bee virus and Nosema ceranae in North America going back a decade or more. We need to see how similar the CCD strain of iridescent virus is to the IIV-24 strain from Apis ceranae. It is possible that US bees acquired IIV from the Apis ceranae along with Nosema ceranae and Kashmir bee virus.”
While unsubstantiated “fringe” explanations for CCD abound, ranging from cell phones to pesticides to GMO crops, the common factor is that pathogens previously found only in Asia have spread to countries lacking effective biosecurity, such as the USA, but not to countries with more robust approaches to biosecurity, such as New Zealand. The research team suggests “Standard quarantine practices such as testing of imported bees before they are added to colonies, and disinfection of equipment would likely help.”
Practical Implications For Beekeepers
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The team has two suggestions of interest to beekeepers:
1. “Most IIVs replicate at about 21 C (70 F) and do not replicate above 30-32 C (86 – 89 F). Higher temperatures may suppress the virus by halting replication, whereas cool weather and damp conditions may speed up replication of both IIV and Nosema. Many instances of CCD have occurred following extended periods of cool, damp weather. Several beekeepers have reported to us that they have more problems with bees in areas with frequent fog or in hill areas where the weather is cooler. Placing bees in warm, sunny locations appears to help.”
2. "Varroa may act as a vector for the dispersal of IIV among bee colonies. Varroa is known to increase damage caused by other viruses, and beekeepers who fail to control varroa levels are likely to sustain high colony losses.”
This may not sound like much, but it is a vast improvement over the usual vague platitudes we’ve been handed over and over about “maintaining strong colonies” and “minimizing stress”. It also ups the ante in the age-old debate among beekeepers over placing hives in sun versus placing hives in shade.