A honeybee resurgence?

[amitten]

As many of you know, the honeybee populations in America have been dwindling at an alarming rate.

This spring, for the first time in years, there are honeybees ALL OVER my yard! My landscaping hasn't changed any, but the honeybee population sure has.

Anyone else noticed this...? It makes me happy.

[mwdem]

1. I had tons of them around last summer/fall.

They were drinking out of my patio fountain. It was so cool. I hope they come back.

[amitten]

4. Heartening news. The environmental wisdom of late is that the

worldwide honeybee population has decreased by 3/4 recently.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

2. I have seen the same thing here in L.A.

Quite remarkable.

[amitten]

6. Good news! This makes me really happy. I hadn't seen

honeybees in years, and I've been worried.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

8. I like your avatar.

It looks vaguely familiar.

[amitten]

11. Ha.

It has a personal meaning that I won't go into here.

[AngryAmish]

3. can't talk, I'm buzzing off

[moez]

18. Careful, or you'll get honey all over the keyboard....

[ddeclue]

31. DUZY Alert! nt

[backscatter712]

5. I hope so!

I'm wondering if scientists found a reason for Colony Collapse Disorder...

Was it a pesticide? A parasite? Monsanto's frankencrops?

[amitten]

9. I have a strange feeling it was possibly a pesticide that was

quietly pulled from the market. Nobody wants the honeybees to die off, since we rely on them for food.

I think the culprit was found and warned, and given the chance to pull the product quietly to avoid negative media attention.

Purely speculation, but it would explain a sudden honeybee resurgence in the absence of other unusual factors (weather, etc.).

[EFerrari]

13. I watched a documentary about Monsanto that showed a kind of butterfly

that died after eating from their RoundUp Ready GM corn plants. The guy who did the study was basically tackled and discredited by Monsanto thugs which leads me to believe he was onto something. :shrug:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

12. The weight of scientific evidence points to parasites and infectious disease.

[backscatter712]

16. I guess that's the thing with pathgens.

If a parasite or germ is so virulent and damaging to the host, and kills it off too quickly, it all of the sudden runs out of vectors it can use to spread.

So there's evolutionary pressure for germs and parasites to keep their effects on the hosts down to a dull roar.

Could it be that the honeybees had their equivalent of the 1918 Spanish Flu? The Spanish Flu didn't stay around forever either.

[northernlights]

20. co-evolution

bacteria and host mutually evolve to equilibrium. Immune-compromised hosts die off, but normal, healthy hosts carry on. From the bacteria's perspective, I call it "survival of the less fit."

Really freaks the "Darwin is bunk" crowd to learn that we can watch bacteria evolve in realtime.

[backscatter712]

25. This is where Stephen Colbert...

plugs his ears and yells "LALALALALALALALALALA!!!"

[amitten]

37. Researchers haven't been able to point to a bacteria as the

cause.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

28. That's all entirely possible.

Although:

1. I think the die off was wildly exaggerated; there were many false claims of CCD when investigators found no evidence of such.

2. It could have been caused by mulitiple problems. Parasites in one place, bacteria in another, pesticides in a third, all complicated by bee rental transport.

3. No evidence the problem is over. I never saw a decline of bees on my plants. The OP is anecdotal.

[JMDEM]

7. Those aren't bees. They are stealth drones spying on you.

Oh... gotta run!

[WillyT]

10. Yes...

Samantha Bee Explains Short Selling (VIDEO)

Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/17/samantha-bee-explains-sho_n_175624.html

:hide:

:hi:

:silly:

[amitten]

14. Does EVERYTHING have to be about politics around here...?

:P

Thanks for the link.

[foxfeet]

15. I had lots of honeybees on my Chinese witch hazel this past February.

More than I've seen for a long time. We have orchard mason bees as well, but the honeybees outnumbered them. It was a good thing to see.

[amitten]

17. I don't think I've seen so many in at least 10 years or so.

It's as if one small facet of Mother Nature is returning to "normal"...

[dysfunctional press]

19. we had plenty of them last year...but it's still too early for them around here.

nt

[GreenPartyVoter]

21. Spring? You have spring already?! *pouting over having to wait at least another month*

[amitten]

22. Yes, spring sprung here in TX about a week ago.

And I wasn't expecting The Return Of The Bees. But I'm glad it happened.

[GreenPartyVoter]

27. Yeah, it's great those busy li'l guys are back. :^)

[Beetwasher]

23. Could Be Evolution/Natural Selection At Work

The one's that are left are resistant to whatevers been killing them off. Those are now reproducing a new generation w/ immunity to whatever it was that's been killing them.

Although to be fair, your anecdote is hardly enough evidence to claim a comeback at this point. As nice as that anecdote is!

[amitten]

24. I know. I thought the resurgence could be unique to my area.

That's why I posted asking for feedback from others.

At any rate, it can't be a bad sign.

[backscatter712]

26. Not just on the bees, but the parasites or germs too.

If the pathogens are too lethal, they kill themselves off too.

There's evolutionary pressure for parasites and pathogens to keep their effects on the host down to a dull roar, so the host lives longer and gives more chances to pass on the pathogen.

[Beetwasher]

29. Yup

Good point.

[amitten]

34. True. But researchers are so far unsure what has caused the

massive die-off.

It would be unusual for a pathogen to have such a quick effect worldwide, I would think.

[backscatter712]

35. Yeah. I don't have enough knowledge on this.

It could be a parasite or a germ of some sort (viral? bacterial? fungal? Who knows?)

Others were mentioning that it was a type of pesticide that was being sprayed on crops that was killing the bees.

We all saw the public fight over this - with pesticide companies publicly refusing to budge and attempting to discredit researchers.

But I think the action was in a back room, and the pesticide companies agreed to pull one of their products in exchange for sweeping things under the rug.

A few years from now, the researchers will come out with additional studies proving a link to this pesticide, then the companies can save face by saying "We haven't sold that product for years!"

[amitten]

36. That's what I think re: pesticides.

The same sort of die-off has been affecting frog populations worldwide for years.

Frogs are extra-sensitive to chemicals in their surroundings.

[Z_I_Peevey]

30. I noticed honeybees all around the blooming wild plums

just yesterday. It's been two years on my place without them. I was so happy to see the bees I marked it on my calendar!

Here's to a resurgent spring.

[4lbs]

32. My parents told me that all their trees that have flowers are swarming with bees.

The cell phone usage in their area is quite high, since they live near a busy part of the city.

Thus, I'm not sure that cell phones are the main culprit for CCD as had been theorized by some.

[ejpoeta]

33. oh i hope so. I never really realized that I never saw any until someone said something

about them dying off. In my yard we do not have any honey bees. We have wasps and yellow jackets. I hope the honey bees can prevail. They are so essential to so much. We are constantly reminded of the delicate balance to keep life going. The ecosystem is so fragile. Every part of it is so important for every other aspect.