Spiegel | Collapsing Colonies: Are GM Crops Killing Bees?

[Shallah Kali]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,473166,00.html

A mysterious decimation of bee populations has German beekeepers worried, while a similar phenomenon in the United States is gradually assuming catastrophic proportions. The consequences for agriculture and the economy could be enormous.

The problem, says Haefeker, has a number of causes, one being the varroa mite, introduced from Asia, and another is the widespread practice in agriculture of spraying wildflowers with herbicides and practicing monoculture. Another possible cause, according to Haefeker, is the controversial and growing use of genetic engineering in agriculture.

{snip}

But that could soon change. Since last November, the US has seen a decline in bee populations so dramatic that it eclipses all previous incidences of mass mortality. Beekeepers on the east coast of the United States complain that they have lost more than 70 percent of their stock since late last year, while the west coast has seen a decline of up to 60 percent.

In an article in its business section in late February, the New York Times calculated the damage US agriculture would suffer if bees died out. Experts at Cornell University in upstate New York have estimated the value bees generate -- by pollinating fruit and vegetable plants, almond trees and animal feed like clover -- at more than $14 billion.

Please read the entire article. I can't include all the important parts in the excerpt.

[mike_c]

1. this is utterly specious....

There is exactly ZERO evidence to support this claim-- it is speculation on the scale of "maybe anti-bee forces from Jupiter are killing bees...."

[anitar1]

2. I've been aware of this for awhile, but most seem to be

oblivious. I remember the last scare, a few years back. Bumblebees were out trying to do the job, in my garden. But this is far more serious. People totally out of touch with nature.

[fed-up]

3. Einstein: "No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man."

we need to look at EVERY possible cause and rule nothing out until the problem is solved

from the article:

"As far back as 2005, Haefeker ended an article he contributed to the journal Der Kritischer Agrarbericht (Critical Agricultural Report) with an Albert Einstein quote: "If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man."

[Cogito ergo doleo]

4. Too bad funding is so limited (per article)

This is as disastrous as any calamity we could ever face our planet and all possible causes must be explored without prejudice.

GMO crops are not being ruled out as a cause according to the Mid-Atlantic Apiculture Research and Extension Consortium. Although the research into the crops is not being studied at this time, this could change rapidly as other studies are discarded.

"What are examples of topics that the CCD working group is not currently investigating?

GMO crops: Some GMO crops, specifically Bt Corn have been suggested as a potential cause of CCD. While this possibility has not been ruled out, CCD symptoms do not fit what would be expected in Bt affected organisms. For this reason GMO crops are not a “top” priority at the moment."

Mid-Atlantic Apiculture Research and Extension Consortium PDF
http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/FAQ/FAQCCD.pdf

[Shallah Kali]

5. according to the article BtCorn is suspected of making bees vulnerable to disease

The study in question is a small research project conducted at the University of Jena from 2001 to 2004. The researchers examined the effects of pollen from a genetically modified maize variant called "Bt corn" on bees. A gene from a soil bacterium had been inserted into the corn that enabled the plant to produce an agent that is toxic to insect pests. The study concluded that there was no evidence of a "toxic effect of Bt corn on healthy honeybee populations." But when, by sheer chance, the bees used in the experiments were infested with a parasite, something eerie happened. According to the Jena study, a "significantly stronger decline in the number of bees" occurred among the insects that had been fed a highly concentrated Bt poison feed.

According to Hans-Hinrich Kaatz, a professor at the University of Halle in eastern Germany and the director of the study, the bacterial toxin in the genetically modified corn may have "altered the surface of the bee's intestines, sufficiently weakening the bees to allow the parasites to gain entry -- or perhaps it was the other way around. We don't know.

whatever the cause I hope they can find it out soon. 70 to 80% loss of bees is devastating to agriculture. In recent years where i live I haven't seen many honey bees. I only spotted one last year rolling around like a cat in catnip inside a lily blossom.

[NickB79]

6. Corn is wind-pollinated

How would Bt corn pollen affect bees, when bees don't pollinate corn plants?