It is hard for me to believe that something other than the constant “mess ups” of the Bush administration could be threatening civilization as we know it, but apparently this is the case. If you have nothing better to do and want to scare yourself silly, go to the Google, plug in “Colony Collapse Disorder” and start reading. After a couple of minutes, please pause and send me a comment about why I shouldn’t be concerned about this.
Maybe I’m overacting (it certainly wouldn’t be the first time) but I don’t think so. I know this isn’t really a diary, but I wanted to get some feedback from the more knowledgeable folks here and thought I had a better chance with this format. Forgive me please if I have overstepped my bounds.
From what I’ve read and heard (admittedly minimal), seems like there’s reason to be gravely concerned. Of course I’ll defer to those with actual expertise in the biological sciences or who has some background in ecological issues. But yeah, the impact on agriculture could be profound. Collectively, we humans have managed to forget the interconnections between all the various life forms. Was only a matter of time before we began to pay the price for that.
Not sure if you saw this one: Cell Phones and Bee Colonies
Locally, the cherry and plum trees are blooming, as are the maples, I have seen bumble bees and small bees, though I have no idea if they are honey bees or not. I noticed in the local paper the county extension office was offering an introductory course on beekeeping – no mention of “colony collapse disorder.”
I hope to get to a local market this week; I will ask how the honey bees are doing.
No, I hadn’t been aware Booman wrote about this last week. Thanks for the link. I had not read anything here about CCD but have elsewhere. Sorry if this is redundant. Have you seen or heard anything on TV news about this??
I don’t watch TV, so I have no idea what has been reported locally. My reading of the local paper is sporadic, so I will check out the market and listen for any news on local bees.
In all three areas, preliminary studies find a possible cause of Colony Collapse Disorder:
Honeybees may be in a crossfire–destruction from several directions.
Human food world-wide is at risk, because honeybees are needed for polination of most fruit trees. CCD is turning up in Europe, which is–short of the Gulf Stream shutting down–about the worst news possible. If CCD is not stopped, Europe will starve and depopulate.
North America has many food species imported from Europe–most are vulnerable. Foods native to North America are polinated in other ways–think squash, corn and beans. Unfortunately, corn is being destoyed as a food right now. Genetically engineered genes are now wandering in the wild, and it is likely that all varieties of corn (maize)–not just the deliberately corrupted ones–will eventually be contaminated.
Most of the things that we think of as food are at risk.
What is happening is a crime unprecedented and unimagined in human history.
We may not be around long enough for global warming to be a problem . . .