Are Honey Bess dying due to pesticides?
Honey bees have been dying at an alarming rate over the past few years. It is called colony collapse disorder. Estimates are a third of all honey bee colonies have disappeared. Are pesticides the cause of our precious honey bees dying?
As important as honey bees are to the agriculture and wildlife of the world, there has not been enough of an outcry about their dying off so rapidly. What if a third of all cows in the world had died? Or how about a third of all fruit trees? More needs to be done on colony collapse disorder or our crops will suffer greatly in the near future.
The concern is a group of pesticides known as neonicotinoids which are highly toxic to bees. They cause several symptoms in honey bees such as memory loss, navigation disruption, paralysis and death. Several European countries have already suspended the use of neonicotinoids.
Recent studies have found neonicotinoids are being ingested by bees at over 1000 times the normal rate via water droplets from corn leaves grown with pesticide coated seeds. There still isn't a clear answer though as to the plight of the honey bee. There seems to be no single answer though to colony collapse disorder. Researchers are thinking the disorder is of many issues. Pesticides, viral, fungal and stress disorders are also being looked at.
Bottom line though, our honey bees are in trouble. They are so very important to us we take them for granted. Honey bees pollinate our vegetables, fruits and nuts. Without them these crops yields would crash and nobody could imagine the affects on our economy and quality of living without the honey bee.
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