Researchers focus on bringing bees back: renewed interest into finding new ways to boost bee numbers

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.timesleader.com/news/ap?articleID=1383572

Researchers focus on bringing bees back

By GENARO C. ARMAS

(AP)

The mysterious decline in honeybees has generated renewed interest into finding new ways to boost bee numbers.

Buoyed by public concern over honeybee hives afflicted with colony collapse disorder, researchers are focusing on how the habitat surrounding a hive can affect the health of the honeybees and native bees like bumblebees.

"The more of these pollinator-friendly areas we have ... the more likely we are able to retain bee species," said Karen Goodell, an ecology professor at Ohio State University whose project focuses on native bees.

Separately, scientists in labs trying to unravel the mystery over colony collapse disorder are focusing on how pesticides and other chemicals used in fields and gardens might affect honeybees, bumblebees and other insects that pollinate crops.

…

[Jamastiene]

1. I invite them to come to my yard to study what works.

I don't know what it is, but every bee in the neighborhood lives here. It is a literal bee sanctuary. You step out the door and there they are just buzzing around from triffid to triffid. I don't bother them. They don't bother me.

Apparently, I've done something right. I use no pesticides or herbicides (hence the bees, cow killers, fire ants, Carolina Wolf Spiders the size of drink coasters, triffids, and more). I mow about 4 times per summer.

There is no need to spray everything outside. I don't live there. I live inside, not outside. So, the animals, plants, insects, and strange plants from outer space all know my yard is a haven.

[PDJane]

2. The wolf spiders are harmless........

well, to humans. I actually find them fun to watch. Interesting arachnid. But then, I'm the one with a huge spider specimen (a bird-killing spider from South America, a kind of tarantula) in a box on my wall; a friend's offspring gave me the thing, and had to be convinced not to purchase them for everyone he knew!

What the heck is a Cow killer?

However........I have to say that a back yard without pesticides is a wonderful idea. Of course, you'll have bees! Congratulations!

[Jamastiene]

3. It is a type of wingless wasp.

Here is the species scientific name: Dasymutilla occidentalis

Here is a link to a nice size closeup photo of one:
http://www.animalpicturesarchive.com/view.php?tid=2&did=27000

Here is the Wiki entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutillidae

Even better, here is the BugGuide.net entry:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/159/
(I visit this site and http://www.spiderzrule.com/ both a lot to identify all these critters in my yard. I have grown to love the Carolina Wolf Spiders)

After cicada killer wasps go into cocoons in the ground, cow killers go in and lay their eggs on the cicada killer wasp cocoons. In other words, baby cow killers feed on the larvae of cicada killer wasps. :)

You don't want to step on one, but they are no nuisance as long as you don't try to handle the females. They do not have "queens" like other bee colonies. They are solitary insects for most of their lives.

http://lancaster.unl.edu/pest/resources/CowKiller.shtml

[Jamastiene]

6. Why they are called cow killers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starr_sting_pain_scale

Their sting ranks slightly below that of a bullet ant.

[PDJane]

7. Thank you!

I actually do like insects, if not in my home, thank you. I don't go into their nests, and expect them to mostly stay out of mine!

The first time I saw a Carolina Wolf Spider, I was in a nature conservatory in Florida. After trailing around Disney World (which I didn't care for, except for the gardens), someone asked me what I would like to do! I mentioned seeing a manatee face to face, and thus ended up on the conservatory tour, which was a blast. The wolf spider was on a wooden fence between the wire enclosure and a group of river otters playing to the crowd. This huge, hairy thing was just sitting there; I thought it was a knothole at first, until I looked closer and was absolutely fascinated by the colours and the markings on this thing.

As a bit of amusement, there was a woman in front of me...a very small woman in a very large hat who kept backing into me, elbowing my middle, and stepping on my feet, trying to get the perfect picture of the otters. Finally, I tapped her on the shoulder, pointed out the spider, and suggested that the spider was a perfect subject for a photograph. It's a good thing the camera was attached to her wrist; she screamed, threw her arms into the air and trampled several others in her attempt to get out of the way. For some reason, after that, every time I pointed to something in the foliage, she wouldn't look......and avoided me the rest of the tour.

[Jamastiene]

10. You would love our very large Carolina wolf spiders in my yard.

They are huge. When we first moved here, I was terrified of them. I've been working on getting over my fear of spiders for a while now. I'm doing it on my own. By looking at close up pictures of their eyes, learning about the different species, and studying them (as a hobby), I am learning to not be so ridiculously terrified of them.

[PDJane]

11. The big ones are mostly harmless,

and wolf spiders don't even spin a web.

However, the small ones can be really, really, dangerous!

[peace13]

4. I thought they had determined the source of the poisoning months ago.

Bees - Germany - Monsanto? Or did I dream that?

[OKIsItJustMe]

5. Bees' mysterious deaths still stumping scientists

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_605674.html

Bees' mysterious deaths still stumping scientists

By Rick Wills
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, January 5, 2009

Two and a half years after Pennsylvania beekeepers reported the mysterious disappearance of honeybees, research into the problem is far from finding an explanation.

"This is clearly very complicated. It's also clear that there are lots things killing bees. Everything we look at presents more questions than answers," said Dennis van Engelsdorp, chief bee researcher at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Van Engelsdorp compared the cause of the disease, called Colony Collapse Disorder, to the causes of America's No. 1 killer.

"What causes heart disease -- poor diet, genetics, smoking? It could be any one of a whole bunch of things," he said.

…

[TygrBright]

8. I'm guessing they are going to discover a link between...

...monocropping and bee vulnerability to disease and parasites.

Most of the colonies studied so far have been in commercial apiary applications. Commercial hives are frequently exposed to monocrop environments.

I can't begin to imagine the specifics (I'm neither an entomologist nor a biologist,) but there can't be anything healthy about a species formerly dependent on dozens and dozens of forms of nourishment on a daily basis being limited to one kind at a time for long periods in the life cycle of the hive.

speculatively,
Bright

[OKIsItJustMe]

9. Poor nutrition is one of the stresses being studied

http://www.ars.usda.gov/Services/docs.htm?docid=15908