Reported May 2009

MYSTERIOUS BEE DEATHS: The affliction is called colony collapse disorder, or CCD. There is not yet any clear explanation for why bees are dying in such large numbers. It appears their immune systems are compromised. This could be due to nutritional problems. As bees migrate from the north to the south during the winter, they feed on nutritionally poor plants and ingest second-rate sugars, such as the leftovers from soda production. Alternatively, there might be a new parasite or virus in the environment that is able to bypass the bees' immune system. For instance, the varroa mite is a bloodsucking parasite that attacks honeybees, resulting in deformed wings and abdomens. The varroa mite also transmits viruses. The tracheal mite gets inside adult bees and clogs their breathing tubes, suffocating them. Bees may also be dying because of chemical pesticides commonly used in the US to treat crops

HOW POLLINATION WORKS: Flower nectar is one of two food sources used by honeybees. The other is pollen, which the worker bees gather daily on foraging flights. As bees forage for nectar, pollen sticks to the tiny hairs covering their bodies, and some of that pollen rubs off on the next flower the bee visits. This fertilizes the flower, resulting in better fruit production. The bees unload the remaining pollen when they return to the hive, which is stored in the honeycomb, providing protein and other nutrients for the bees. The honeycomb is the central feature of the beehive, made of beeswax produced by glands in the worker bees. The comb is two-sided with cells on both sides, some meant to contain food, others to serve as a nursery for the queen bee to lay her eggs.

If you would like more information, please contact:

Susan Cobey
University of California, Davis
(530) 754-9390
swcobey@ucdavis.edu

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