Disappearing Honey Bees: the little guy who brings food to our table

The past week has seen some major ecological issues - from oil spills to the commercial shark fisheries to entire seas at risk. Let's finish the work week with a look at something a lot smaller: Apis millifera - the honey bee.

To many people, bees are responsible for two things: honey for our toast or tea, and a tender red welt (or worse) if we happen to get stung. For years, we have followed news reports of the expansion of the African killer bee; a more aggressive strain that was migrating from South America northward and establishing its own colonies or cross-breading with other species. While the aggressive nature of this particular species is certainly a point of concern, there is a greater threat to bees and humans alike.

The populations of honey bees have been in steady decline, often identified as CDD (colony collapse disorder) and responsible for declines in many areas, ranging from 30 percent to as high as 90 percent. The U.S. government has reported declines in bee hives in the last three years (2007 thru 2009) by 32, 36, and 29 percent, respectively. Since bees are the primary pollinators for many fruits and vegetables, this represents a major multi-billion dollar threat to the agricultural industry. In fact, it has been reported that as much as a third of our food is due to the actions of the honey bee.

"Honey and royal jelly are examples of precious food that we owe to bees but foremost we owe them abundant harvesting of fruits and vegetables since they contribute to pollinate the flowers which will produce the harvest," said Bernard Vallat, the Director General of OIE (World Organization for Animal Health). "Bees contribute to global food security, and their extinction would represent a terrible biological disaster."

The OIE has issued a report that points to a combination of issues which are conspiring against the honey bee. The extensive and sometimes irresponsible use of pesticides can weaken the overall health of the bee, exposing it to other diseases and pathogens - some old and some newly discovered.

Also, invasive species can take their toll (like Europe's recent intruder, the Asian hornet, which hunts and devours bees in mid-flight). Various mites and parasites attack bees and their numbers have increased in various parts of the world due to changing conditions, in some cases brought on by changes in climate.

Adding to all of that, as much as we depend on bees for our agricultural output, we don't make it easy for them. Large mega-farms, that look to bees for their cooperation, provide poor nutrition for the bees by stripping away wild flowers and shrubs. I have seen this on drives up California's central valley (the state's agricultural "breadbasket"). Row after row of fruit and nut trees with white man-made bee hives constructed throughout the orchards - but with nothing else in the area for the bees to feed on.

Insignificant to many, the honey bee actually plays a major role in our ability to feed ourselves. And it is under attack. There is no "silver bullet" solution. As much as we like to gravitate towards those simple answers, what is required here is a comprehensive approach. The cascade of influences impacting the health of the honey bee can have profound economic and health implications right in our own backyard.

Without the simple honey bee, mankind can really get stung.

Read article from the Mother Nature Network.

Birds in Flight: climate change is threatening their range

Many of the discussions regarding climate change revolve around the impacts seen at the opposing polar regions: the Arctic and Antarctic. Loss of animal habitat, encroachment by previously foreign animal and plant species - with these events we often consider what has happened or will happen in these areas as indications of future events in the more populated warmer regions of the earth.

But there are changes taking place right now in "our backyard" that can be documented as was recently done by the National Audubon Society regarding North American bird migrations and changes in their range or territory. The Society tabulated winter migration data over the past 40 years from 2,000 locations nationwide. The data shows that 58% of the 305 most common North American species have shifted their ranges northward and inland by an average of 35 miles. In a few cases, the distance was much greater, as with the purple finch, common in Missouri but now moving 300 miles north towards Canada.

"Too many people hear about melting glaciers and polar bears and conclude that the impacts of global warming are far into the future and far from home," said NAS president, John Flicker. "But the impact of climate change can be seen right now in the birds that are right outside our door - or not," referring to the possibility that many species may be unable to exist in new locations and extinction becomes a real possibility.

While there are those who debate the cause of climate change, man-made or cyclical, one thing is for sure: we must consider the implications of what is happening now and in the near future - before our efforts to reduce greenhouse gases take effect or before the next cyclical change, depending on your favored position. Birds are a crucial part of plant pollination and seed germination by virtue of the plants and insects they feed upon. How will these natural processes be impacted? How will those impacts affect the large agricultural areas we have come to depend on for fruits, vegetables, or grain?

We are faced with many unknowns and there is much to be studied and hypothesized - waiting until we have a definitive result may be too late as changes in nature can move deceptively slow but with tremendous momentum. Time to act. It's not just "for the birds."

Download National Audubon Society report.