There is something very satisfying about watching bees buzz round flowers on a warm summer day. Bees not only make honey from their work but also do an absolutely crucial job for us by pollinating the flowers of fruit and vegetable plants to produce food.
The news that bee colonies are collapsing at an alarming rate is a cause for concern across the world. Governments are pouring cash into research to find the cause. Some say it is pesticides others that it is continual in breeding that has created weak strains of bees making them more susceptible to disease. One area of consensus is that the varroa mite is having a big effect. Others say pesticides are the culprit.
Now it seems that a combination of factors is to blame. Many influences have come together to cause bee colonies to die out. An article in New Scientist this week says;
The world’s honeybees appear to be dying off in horrifying numbers, and now consensus is starting to emerge on the reason why: it seems there is no one cause. Infections, lack of food, pesticides and breeding – none catastrophic on their own – are having a synergistic effect, pushing bee survival to a lethal tipping point.
The article also gives a clue to how serious the situation has become by saying that a third of world food production relies on bees for pollination.
I recently read a piece in a fruit club magazine which questioned the role of pesticides arguing that there is no proof those products, that have been used for years and classed as safe, could cause such problems. There have been suspicions that many pesticides have been killing bees for a long time. Not only do bees get caught by field spraying but the indiscriminate and over use of insecticides in homes and gardens also has an effect. In the end you have to ask what are pesticides for?
One of the culprits is alleged to be imidacloprid. There have been suspicions for a while that it has a bad effect on bees. See this article for more information.
Like many I am concerned by the scale of the problem and the effects it is having on food production. Action needs to be taken very quickly to avoid a disaster. I heard one commentator say that bees could be extinct within 10 years if nothing is done.
We can spend massive amount of money bailing out banks now lets spend some on bailing out bees. A lot of research is needed to restore bee health and governments must act now. I know the UK government has given the National Bee Unit £2.3 million to ‘map the problem’ but that should be just the start.
What can we do? Learn about bee keeping and organic bee hives at our organic gardens. At least that will give some colonies a chance.
More information
Save our bees campaign
The British Beekeepers Association
Beecraft
Bee friendly flowers
Bee keeping courses
More courses
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