Crop-helping honeybees dying mystery deaths
Honeybees are dying at surprising levels, and scientists haven't yet figured out why, this morning's Philadelphia Inquirer says. If you think the die-off will simply save you from stings this summer or will just cramp your sweet honey love, think again.
"At stake is the work the honeybees do, pollinating more than $15 billion worth of U.S. crops, including Pennsylvania's apple harvest, the fourth-largest in the nation, worth $45 million, and New Jersey's cranberries and blueberries.
"While a few crops, such as corn and wheat, are pollinated by the wind, most need bees. Without these insects, crop yields would fall dramatically. Agronomists estimate Americans owe one in three bites of food to bees."
Read the full story. Researchers are examing a virus, a "new fungal pathogen," new pesticides, and the long-distance shipping of bees as possible causes.
Friday's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has more. The "Colony Collapse Disorder" is under investigation in 11 states, the paper says. And in case you're still wondering about honey, your answer is here. "The effect on the honey market is less pronounced. More than half the honey sold in the United States is imported, especially from Argentina and China."
A Penn State website has the press release announcing the findings and research materials from the group examining the deaths.
Honeybees are dying at surprising levels, and scientists haven't yet figured out why, this morning's Philadelphia Inquirer says. If you think the die-off will simply save you from stings this summer or will just cramp your sweet honey love, think again.
"At stake is the work the honeybees do, pollinating more than $15 billion worth of U.S. crops, including Pennsylvania's apple harvest, the fourth-largest in the nation, worth $45 million, and New Jersey's cranberries and blueberries.
"While a few crops, such as corn and wheat, are pollinated by the wind, most need bees. Without these insects, crop yields would fall dramatically. Agronomists estimate Americans owe one in three bites of food to bees."
Read the full story. Researchers are examing a virus, a "new fungal pathogen," new pesticides, and the long-distance shipping of bees as possible causes.
Friday's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has more. The "Colony Collapse Disorder" is under investigation in 11 states, the paper says. And in case you're still wondering about honey, your answer is here. "The effect on the honey market is less pronounced. More than half the honey sold in the United States is imported, especially from Argentina and China."
A Penn State website has the press release announcing the findings and research materials from the group examining the deaths.
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