ccd

From 1971 to 2006, there was a dramatic reduction in the number of feral (wild) honeybees in the US (now almost absent);[11] and a significant, though somewhat gradual decline in the number of colonies maintained by beekeepers. This decline includes the cumulative losses from all factors such as urbanization, pesticide use, tracheal and Varroa mites, and commercial beekeepers retiring and going out of business. http://Louis-J-Sheehan.de However, late in the year 2006 and in early 2007 the rate of attrition was alleged to have reached new proportions, and the term "Colony Collapse Disorder" was proposed to describe this sudden rash of disappearances.[1]

Limited occurrences resembling CCD have been documented as early as 1896,[6][12] and this set of symptoms has in the past several decades been given many different names (disappearing disease, spring dwindle, May disease, autumn collapse, and fall dwindle disease).[13] Most recently, a similar phenomenon in the winter of 2004/2005 occurred, and was attributed to Varroa mites (the "Vampire Mite" scare), though this was never ultimately confirmed. Nobody has been able to determine the cause of any past appearances of this syndrome. Upon recognition that the syndrome does not seem to be seasonally-restricted, and that it may not be a "disease" in the standard sense — that there may not be a specific causative agent — the syndrome was renamed.[14]

Symptoms

A colony which has collapsed from CCD is generally characterized by all of these conditions occurring simultaneously[15]:

* Complete absence of adult bees in colonies, with little or no build-up of dead bees in or around the colonies.
* Presence of capped brood in colonies. Bees normally will not abandon a hive until the capped brood have all hatched.
* Presence of food stores, both honey and bee pollen:

* i. which are not immediately robbed by other bees
* ii. which when attacked by hive pests such as wax moth and small hive beetle, the attack is noticeably delayed.

Precursor symptoms that may arise before the final colony collapse are:

* Insufficient workforce to maintain the brood that is present
* Workforce seems to be made up of young adult bees
* The Queen is present
* The colony members are reluctant to consume provided feed, such as sugar syrup and protein supplement.http://Louis-J-Sheehan.de

Scale of the disorder

In the U.S., at least 24 different states[5][16] as well as portions of Canada[17] have reported at least one case of CCD. However, in many cases, beekeepers reporting significant losses of bees did not experience CCD, and a major part of the subsequent analysis of the phenomenon hinges upon distinguishing between true CCD losses and non-CCD losses.[18] In a survey of 384 responding beekeepers from 13 states, reporting the number of hives containing few or no bees in spring, only 23.8% met the specified criteria for CCD (that 50% or more of their dead colonies were found without bees and/or with very few dead bees in the hive or apiary).[18] In the US, despite highly variable anecdotal claims appearing in the media, the best documentation indicates that CCD-suffering operations had a total loss of 45% compared to the total loss of 25% of all colonies experienced by non-CCD suffering beekeepers in 2006-2007; it is further noted that non-CCD winter losses as high as 50% have occurred in some years and regions (e.g., 2000-2001 in Pennsylvania), though "normal" winter losses are typically considered to be in the range of 15-25%.[18]

There are also putative cases reported by the media from India, Brazil[19] and parts of Europe.[20] Since the beginning of the 1990s, France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Greece, Slovenia and the Netherlands have been affected by honey bee disappearances, though this is not necessarily associated with CCD;[2] Austria and United Kingdom (where it has been dubbed the "Mary Celeste" phenomenon, after a ship whose crew disappeared in 1872[21]) have also reportedly been affected.[4] It is far from certain that all or any of these reported non-US cases are indeed CCD: there has been considerable publicity, but only rarely was the phenomenon described in sufficient detail. In Germany, for example, where some of the first reports of CCD in Europe appeared, and where — according to the German national association of beekeepers — 40% of the honey bee colonies died,[4] there has been no scientific confirmation; as of early May 2007, the German media were reporting that no confirmed CCD cases seemed to have occurred in Germany.[22]

Possible causes and research

The exact mechanisms of CCD are still unknown. One report indicates a strong but possibly non-causal association between the syndrome and the presence of the Israel acute paralysis virus.[8] Other factors may also be involved, however, and several have been proposed as causative agents; malnutrition, pesticides, pathogens, immunodeficiencies, mites, fungus, genetically modified (GM) crops, beekeeping practices (such as the use of antibiotics, or long-distance transportation of beehives) and electromagnetic radiation. Whether any single factor is responsible, or a combination of factors (acting independently in different areas affected by CCD, or acting in tandem), is still unknown. It is likewise still uncertain whether CCD is a genuinely new phenomenon, as opposed to a known phenomenon that previously only had a minor impact.

At present, the primary source of information, and presumed "lead" group investigating the phenomenon, is the Colony Collapse Disorder Working Group, based primarily at Penn State University. Their preliminary report pointed out some patterns, but drew no strong conclusions.[14] A survey of beekeepers early in 2007 indicates that most hobbyist beekeepers believed that starvation was the leading cause of death in their colonies, while commercial beekeepers overwhelmingly believed that invertebrate pests (Varroa mites, honey bee tracheal mites, and/or small hive beetles) were the leading cause of colony mortality.[18] A scholarly review in June 2007, similarly addressed numerous theories and possible contributing factors, but left the issue unresolved.[13]

In July 2007, the USDA released its "CCD Action Plan", which outlines a strategy for addressing CCD consisting of four main components:[23]

1. survey and data collection;
2. analysis of samples;
3. hypothesis-driven research; and,
4. mitigation and preventative action. http://Louis-J-Sheehan.de

As of late 2007, there is still no consensus of opinion, and no definitive causes have emerged; the schedule of presentations for a planned national symposium on CCD, titled "Colony Collapse Disorder in Honey Bees: Insight Into Status, Potential Causes, and Preventive Measures," which is scheduled for December 11, 2007, at the meeting of the Entomological Society of America in San Diego, California, gives no indication of any major breakthroughs.[3]