Insecticide the cause of disappearing bees and colonies?

It’s a bigger deal than you may think.

Writing for Forbes Magazine, Eric Mack states, “For the past eight years or so, we’ve been hearing the term ‘Colony Collapse Disorder’ (CCD) to refer to the seemingly spontaneous abandonment of their hives by honeybees. Bees have been abandoning their hives for centuries, but the rate at which such collapses have been observed started to increase more drastically in the 1970s, reaching alarming proportions around 2006. While numerous causes for the phenomenon have been floated, from pathogens and parasites to electromagnetic radiation and a proliferation of genetically-modified crops, new research from the Harvard School of Public Health bolsters the case that a certain class of insecticides seem to be to blame.”

“Working with the Worcester County Beekeepers Association in Massachusetts,” continues Mack, “the researchers exposed 12 colonies across three locations to a ‘sub-lethal exposure of neonicotinoids, imidacloprid or clothianidin.’ Neonicotinoids are popular insecticides that are chemically similar to nicotine. The scientists also observed six untreated control colonies at the same locations. The study found that all the bee colonies went about their business normally through the summer and fall, but by the end of winter six of the twelve hives exposed to the insecticide had been abandoned. One of the six control colonies was also lost due to an infestation by a fungus.” continue reading article