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<p class="MsoNormal">A few questions have arisen regarding the link
between
diseases from commercial bumble bees and the decline of wild bumble
bees, in
regard to the recent petition submitted to the USDA-APHIS by the Xerces
Society
<i style="">et al.</i> and some media stories about
that petition. Unfortunately, some of the media stories contained
misleading
information.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Two recent studies have been published that
provide a direct
link between diseases in commercial bumble bees and the health of wild
bumble
bees: </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="">Otterstatter,
M.C., and J.D. Thomson. 2008. Does Pathogen Spillover from Commercially
Reared Bumble Bees Threaten Wild Pollinators? <i>PLoS One.</i>
Available online at <a href="http://www.plosone.org/doi/pone.0002771">http://www.plosone.org/doi/pone.0002771</a>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family: AdvCAECI-BI;">Colla,
S.R.,
M.C. Otterstatter, R.J. Gegear, and J.D. Thomson. </span><span style=""
lang="ES">2006. </span>Plight of the Bumblebee: Pathogen
Spillover from Commercial to Wild Populations. <i>Biological
Conservation</i> 129:
461-467.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Otterstatter and Thomson note, in the Discussion
section of
their 2008 paper: </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“Based on our model, and our observations near
greenhouses,
it is probable that destructive pathogens have been spilling over into
wild bee
populations since the collapse of commercial <i>B. occidentalis</i>
during the
late 1990s, and this has contributed to the ongoing collapse of wild <i>Bombus</i>
sensu stricto.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">These studies show that wild bumble bees near
greenhouses have
higher pathogen loads (of <i style="">Crithidia bombi</i>
and <i style="">Nosema bombi</i>) than bumble bees
farther away from greenhouses. While these studies demonstrate the
mechanism by
which pathogens can be transferred from commercial bumble bees in
greenhouses
to wild bumble bees, they do not prove that disease from commercially
reared
bumble bees caused the precipitous decline that has been observed in <i
style="">Bombus affinis, Bombus franklini, Bombus
terricola </i>and<i style=""> Bombus occidentalis</i>.
Dr. Robbin Thorp’s hypothesis that these species were infected by a
selectively
virulent strain of <i style="">Nosema bombi</i> that
originated in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> is currently
being tested
by Dr. Sydney Cameron, Dr. Lee Solter, Dr. Jamie Strange, and others.
Regardless of whether or not their work identifies a “smoking gun,” the
Xerces
Society asserts that diseases from commercially transported bumble bees
present
a significant risk to wild, native bumble bees, and this risk warrants
new regulations.
We support the development of federal regulations that take a
precautionary
approach to safeguarding our wild, native pollinators. In fact, the
USDA-APHIS
conducted their own risk assessment in the 1990s and concluded that the
risks
to wild, native bumble bees were too great to allow <i style="">Bombus
impatiens</i> to be shipped outside of its native range (west of
the <st1:place w:st="on">Rockies</st1:place>). For various reasons,
they
stopped regulating the interstate transport of this species – we’re
asking that
they reinstate that old regulation and develop some disease
certification
standards.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="">I’d also
like to point out that there is no evidence demonstrating that moving
bumble
bees outside of their native ranges is safe for wild bumble bees.
Because there
are no federal regulations in place regarding the interstate transport
of
bumble bees, commercial bumble bees are currently not inspected for
diseases when
they’re moved between states. Dr. Paul Williams and Dr. Juliet Osborne,
in their
2009 review paper "Bumble bee
vulnerability and conservation worldwide<i style="">" </i>(published
in <i>Apidologie</i>),
recommend: “Until proven safe, we recommend that live bumblebees should
not be
moved across continents or oceans for commercial pollination.” As an
aside,
APHIS does not allow bumble bees to be imported from other countries
(except <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Canada</st1:place></st1:country-region>)
- we
support that regulation.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In a recent post on the BOMBUS and POLLINATOR
listservs,
Marilyn Steiner brought up the issue of habitat loss affecting bumble
bees. The
Xerces Society recognizes that there are many issues that may
negatively impact
wild bumble bees, including disease, habitat loss, and pesticide use.
The
USDA-APHIS does not have the regulatory authority to address habitat
loss or
pesticide use threats, and thus our petition did not address those two
issues.
We do recognize that those issues may be important factors contributing
to the
decline of wild bumble bees, and we have been addressing them through
our other
pollinator conservation work.<br>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Best, <br>
Sarina Jepsen<br>
</p>
<div class="moz-signature">___________________________________________
<br>
<b>The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation</b>
<br>
<br>
The Xerces Society is an international, nonprofit
<br>
organization that protects wildlife through the
<br>
conservation of invertebrates and their habitat.
<br>
To join the Society, make a contribution, or read
<br>
about our work, please visit <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.xerces.org">www.xerces.org</a>
<br>
<br>
Sarina Jepsen
<br>
Endangered Species Program Director
<br>
4828 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, OR 97215
<br>
tel: 503-232-6639 fax: 503-233-6794
<br>
email: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:sarina@xerces.org">sarina@xerces.org</a>
<br>
___________________________________________</div>
<br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:ladadams@aol.com">ladadams@aol.com</a> wrote:
<blockquote cite="mid:c6cc.5e9057aa.3880d0cf@aol.com" type="cite">
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<div>We have been asked several questions about the recent articles
that have appeared on the LISTSERV, particularly the following quote
from the NY Times article,</div>
<div> </div>
<div>"The groups said Tuesday that four species of bumblebees once
common in the United States have seen drastic declines -- <strong>and
the evidence points to diseases spreading out of greenhouses that use
domesticated bumblebees. '</strong></div>
<div> </div>
<div>It is clear that there have been (at least) four species of
bumble bees in decline, but<strong> does anyone know of a published
study that provides evidence to support that this is the result of
diseases spreading out of greenhouses using domesticated bumble bees?</strong></div>
<div><strong></strong> </div>
<div><strong>Thanks.</strong></div>
<div> </div>
<div> </div>
<div><font family="SANSSERIF" ptsize="10" face="Gill Sans MT" lang="0"
size="2"><br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
Laurie Davies Adams<br>
Executive Director<br>
<b>Pollinator Partnership </b><br>
423 Washington Street, 5th floor<br>
San Francisco, CA 94111<br>
415-362-1137<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:LDA@pollinator.org">LDA@pollinator.org</a></font><font family="SANSSERIF" ptsize="10"
color="#000000" face="Arial" lang="0" size="2"><br>
<br>
</font><font family="SANSSERIF" ptsize="14" color="#0000ff"
face="Gill Sans MT" lang="0" size="4"><b><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.pollinator.org/">www.pollinator.org</a></b></font><font
family="SANSSERIF" ptsize="10" color="#000000" face="Gill Sans MT"
lang="0" size="2"><br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.nappc.org/">www.nappc.org</a><br>
<br>
</font><font family="SANSSERIF" ptsize="12" color="#000000"
face="Gill Sans MT" lang="0" size="3"><b><i>National Pollinator Week
is June 21-27, 2010. <br>
Beecome involved at <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.pollinator.org/">www.pollinator.org</a></i></b></font></div>
</font><br>
<br>
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