[Pollinator] Capital Press - Experts aren't convinced CCD will be as devastating as predicted

[Matthew Shepherd (Xerces Society)]

From: Capital Press
http://www.capitalpress.info/main.asp?SectionID=94&SubSectionID=801&ArticleID=33722&TM=52507.24
7/18/2007 9:40:00 AM 

Experts aren't convinced bee colony collapse will be as devastating as predicted
Mateusz Perkowski

SALEM - Colony collapse disorder in beehives has been publicized as a menace to crop production and a sign of the earth's crumbling ecosystem, but some experts aren't convinced the threat will be as devastating as anticipated.

"The media is perpetuating it," said Michael Burgett, retired entomology professor at Oregon State University.

While Burgett acknowledges that some beekeepers in the U.S. have seen serious hive reductions, the evidence about colony collapse disorder has generally been anecdotal, he said.

"We don't know how big the problem is," Burgett said.

If the estimated 25 percent loss of bee populations was correct, it wouldn't be far off from prior die-offs caused by trachael and varroa mites that Burgett has seen in his career. When these parasites were introduced to the U.S. in the 1980s, beekeepers suffered similar rates of reduction, he said.

"It was 25 percent 20 years ago, so what's new?" he said.

The impact of the problem in late 2006 and early 2007 hasn't been precisely quantified, so will be difficult to tell whether colony collapse disorder gets worse next winter - if it returns at all, Burgett said.

Furthermore, the phenomenon may caused by multiple factors rather than one unknown element, he said. 

Some theories as to its cause may hold water, such as insufficient nutrition from certain plants, stress from transportation, pesticide buildup in beeswax and emerging pathogens, according to Burgett.

Pesticide resistance in mites may have also played a role, since many of the symptoms reported by beekeepers mirrored those caused by the parasites, he said. Regional weather conditions may have contributed to heavier population losses as well, he said.

There are also ridiculous theories, like jet contrails or cell phone transmissions causing colony collapse disorder, that have gained traction with the public despite being scientifically unsubstantiated, he said.

"It brings the nuts out, and continues to do so," Burgett said.

People may also not realize that such die-offs don't necessarily result in permanently reduced populations; beekeepers can regenerate their hive numbers, but it takes time and money, he said.

"It's well within good beekeepers' management skills to get colonies to rebound," Burgett said.

Despite heavy winter losses in many states, pollination in the U.S. was not hindered this year, according to the USDA. Nonetheless, the agency launched an action plan July 13 to study and hopefully remedy future colony collapse disorder problems.

The plan will place a major focus on developing reliable statistics about the cause and prevalence of colony collapse disorder.

Current surveys "are either limited in scope, fundamentally flawed, or otherwise unable to provide an accurate picture of bee numbers and products," states the USDA's action plan.

Colony collapse disorder now appears to have been building up over several years, but its strong impact last winter caught researchers by surprise and the information they compiled probably wasn't totally reliable, explained Mace Vaughan, conservation director for the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

"People were scrambling to find out what was going on," he said. "Self-reporting may not be as rigorous as scientific study."

If colony collapse returns in full force this year, it may be a sign that beekeepers and farmers have a serious problem on their hands, he said. 

On the other hand, similarly mysterious phenomenon - such as disappearing disease more than three decades ago - also caused a great deal of consternation but then vanished, Vaughan and Burgett said.

"At this point, there's a big question mark," Vaughan said.

As for Burgett, he remains tentatively optimistic that the predicted effects of colony collapse disorder are overblown.

"Beekeepers have suffered as individuals, but it's not the horror story some people would lead you to believe," he said.

Staff Writer Mateusz Perkowski is based in Salem, Ore. E-mail: mperkowski at capitalpress.com.
______________________________________________________
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
The Xerces Society is an international nonprofit organization that 
protects the diversity of life through invertebrate conservation. To 
join the Society, make a contribution, or read about our work, 
please visit www.xerces.org.

Matthew Shepherd
Director, Pollinator Conservation Program
4828 SE Hawthorne Boulevard, Portland, OR 97215, USA
Tel: 503-232 6639 Cell: 503-807 1577 Fax: 503-233 6794
Email: mdshepherd at xerces.org 
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