CATCH THE BUZZ - CCD Solution? Maybe.

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CATCH THE BUZZ

Very Different Microbes Acting In Concert May Be The Answer To CCD

From the General Meeting Of Microbiology, San Diego, CA, May 25, 2010

New research from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) identifies a new potential cause for “Colony Collapse Disorder” in honeybees.  A group of pathogens including a fungus and family of viruses may be working together to cause the decline.  Scientists report their results today at the 110th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology in San Diego.

 

“There might be a synergism between two very different pathogens,” says Jay Evans of the USDA Agricultural Research Service, a researcher on the study.  “When they show up together there is a significant correlation with colony decline.”

 

Beginning in October 2006, some beekeepers began reporting losses of 30-90 percent of their hives. Although colony losses are not unexpected during winter weather, the magnitude of loss suffered by some beekeepers was highly unusual.

 

“Domesticated honey bees face numerous pests and pathogens, tempting hypotheses that colony collapses arise from exposure to new or resurgent pathogens,” says Evans.

 

To better understand the cause of these collapses, in early 2007 Evans and his colleagues collected bees from both healthy and declining colonies across the country but primarily from California and Florida where most of the commercial pollination activity takes place. They have screened these samples and similar samples from each year since then for both known and novel pathogens.

 

They found a slightly higher incidence of a fungal pathogen known as Nosema ceranae in sick colonies, but it was not statistically significant until they began pairing it with other pathogens.

 

“Levels of the fungus were slightly higher in sick colonies, but the presence of that fungus and 2 or 3 RNA viruses from the family Dicistroviridae is a pretty strong predictor of collapse,” says Evans.

 

Nosema are transferred between bees via the fecal-oral route.  When a bee initially ingests the microbes and they get to the mid-gut, they harpoon themselves into the gut wall and live inside the epithelial cells there.  Evans believes that the slightly higher numbers of the fungus somehow compromise the gut wall and allow the viruses to overwhelm the bees.  In colonies with higher Nosema numbers they found virus levels to be 2-3 times greater than healthy colonies.

 

While this is a working theory and they are still in the discovery phase looking for new pathogens, Evans and his colleagues are also actively looking for a way to boost bee defenses against Nosema.

 “A way to protect against Nosema might be the key for now,” says Evans.

Find out What’s New At Mann Lake right Here   Protein feeding pays off with better bee health, better survival, better production, and better wintering.  Learn More.  Subscribe to Malcolm Sanford’s Apis Newsletter right here For a comprehensive listing of beekeeping events around the country and around the globe, check out Bee Culture’s Global Beekeeping Calendar  This message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping, published by the A.I. Root Company. BEEKEEPING WEBINAR INFORMATION On Tuesday, June 1, 2010, there will be a FREE webinar for everybody and anybody just starting out with bees this year. This is especially geared to those who tuned in earlier this year for our Urban Beekeeper Workshop with Cindy, Cameo and and Toni. Entitled 6 Weeks as a Beekeeper, Now What?, the discussion covers what your bees should be doing now, what issues to look for that are problems now, and anything that might come up in the near future that you can prepare for now. We’ll be evaluating your queen’s productivity, examining brood patterns and balance, along with making sure there isn’t a drone laying queen or laying workers mucking up the works. Plus, we’ll be looking at IPM programs and options for varroa and other issues. Supering? You bet, it’s time to give those bees more room, or if not, we’ll look at why not. And in some places this year, feeding is still an issue…we’ll explore that too. Some may even have a crop ready to harvest, so we’ll take a look at those issues, along with getting ready to harvest&hellip ;which most of us hope to do in just a little bit. This isn’t for Beginner’s only though, so if you just want a refresher or what to find out what the newest information is on any of these topics, come on along. Kim Flottum, from Bee Culture magazine, and Shane Gebauer, General Manager and long time beekeeper from Brushy Mountain Bee Supply are hosting this Free Webinar. How to register is below.

 

Title:		6 weeks as a beekeeper...Now What?
Date:		Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Time:		6:00 PM - 7:00 PM EDT

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/960734619