Bisamhällen håller på att gå under. I USA har uppskattningsvis 40-50 procent av bina dött den senaste vintern, och det ser inte särskilt mycket bättre ut i Europa. Hälften av bina i Schweiz beräknas ha dött vintern 2011-2012. I Sverige har regeringen tillsatt extra forskningspengar för att komma till rätta med problemet och jodbruksverket räknar med att i genomsnitt tolv procent av Sveriges bin dör under vinterhalvåret. I delar av Kina har bina försvunnit totalt - istället tvingas människor att pollinera fruktodlingarna för hand! Effekt Klimatmagasinet 130503.

Bisamhällen kollapsar runt om i världen. USA, Italien, Tyskland och Frankrike har alla drabbats hårt. Något som betyder stora svårigheter för frukt- och bärodlare som är helt beroende av binas pollinering. I USA dog var tredje honungsbi för tre år sedan och i vissa områden i Tyskland har upp till 60 procent av bina plötsligt dött. Fenomenet har tidigare kallats för Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). DN 101016.

Researchers find high-fructose corn syrup may be tied to worldwide collapse of bee colonies. In this new effort, the researchers have found evidence to suggest the real culprit might be high-fructose corn syrup, which beekeepers have been feeding bees as their natural staple, honey, has been taken away from them. Commercial honeybee enterprises began feeding bees high-fructose corn syrup back in the 70's after research was conducted that indicated that doing so was safe. Since that time, new pesticides have been developed and put into use and over time it appears the bees' immunity response to such compounds may have become compromised. The researchers aren't suggesting that high-fructose corn syrup is itself toxic to bees, instead, they say their findings indicate that by eating the replacement food instead of honey, the bees are not being exposed to other chemicals that help the bees fight off toxins, such as those found in pesticides. Phys.org 130430.
Fruktossirap: koncentrerad vattenlösning innehållande främst fruktos. Fruktossirap framställs genom hydrolys av fruktospolymerer isolerade ur växter som jordärtskocka och cikoria eller genom isomerisering av glukossirap. Fruktossirap används som sötningsmedel i främst drycker. (Fruktos- och glukossirap är dålig kost också för människor och finns i många av våra matavaror.)

Substances in Honey Increase Honey Bee Detox Gene Expression. Research in the wake of Colony Collapse Disorder, a mysterious malady afflicting (primarily commercial) honey bees, suggests that pests, pathogens and pesticides all play a role. New research indicates that the honey bee diet influences the bees' ability to withstand at least some of these assaults. Some components of the nectar and pollen grains bees collect to manufacture food to support the hive increase the expression of detoxification genes that help keep honey bees healthy. Science Daily 130501.

US report: Many causes for dramatic bee disappearance. A new U.S. report blames a combination of problems for a mysterious and dramatic disappearance of honeybees across the country since 2006. The disorder has caused as much as one-third of the nation's bees to just disappear each winter since 2006. The factors cited for the bees' disappearance include a parasitic mite, multiple viruses, bacteria, poor nutrition, genetics, habitat loss and pesticides. Bees, especially honeybees, are needed to pollinate crops, and they are crucial to the U.S. food supply. About one-third of the human diet comes from insect-pollinated plants, and the honeybee is responsible for 80 percent of that pollination. About $30 billion a year in agriculture depends on their health. The problems in Europe and United States may be slightly different. In the U.S., bee hives are trucked from farm to farm to pollinate large tracts of land and that may help spread the parasites and disease, as well as add stress to the colonies, while in Europe they stay put, so those issues may not be as big a factor. Phys.org 130502.

Pesticide combination affects bees' ability to learn. Two new studies have highlighted a negative impact on bees' ability to learn following exposure to a combination of pesticides commonly used in agriculture. The researchers found that the pesticides, used in the research at levels shown to occur in the wild, could interfere with the learning circuits in the bee's brain. They also found that bees exposed to combined pesticides were slower to learn or completely forgot important associations between floral scent and food rewards. Phys.org.130327.

Bees survival: Ban more pesticides? Neonicotinoids are under intense scrutiny. But a ban of a broad variety of pesticides may be required to protect bees, humans and the environment. The European Commission, on 29th April 2013, slapped a two-year ban on insecticides suspected of killing off bee colonies. This follows the European Food Safety Authority finding that they pose a high acute risk to honey bees. Studies suggest that the nicotine-like compounds fry bees' navigation systems and leave them unable to learn, while weakening their immune system. But scientists now warn that other nerve agents targeting insect pests may also be harming bees and other pollinators. Phys.org 130503.

Pollinerande insekter drabbas av bekämpningsmedel. Framtiden för insekter som är livsviktiga för matproduktionen ser mörk ut. Det anser den gotländska naturfilmsproducenten Tina-Marie Qwiberg som just nu jobbar med en film om pollinering där bin, humlor och fjärilar drabbas hårt av bekämpningsmedel. Sveriges Radion 130513.

Rune Lanestrand: Biodlarna bidrar till bidöden. I vintras dog en fjärdedel av landets bisamhällen. Det grundläggande hotet är främst gifterna i jordbruket. Utan en radikal omläggning av jordbrukspolitiken kommer bidöden att fortsätta. Biodlarna är också själva en del av problemet. Det är nämligen så att det moderna, avancerade avelsarbetet som försämrat många av våra gamla lantraser också drabbat bina. Ett avelsarbete som minskat mångfalden, gjort bina svagare och mindre motståndskraftiga mot sjukdomar. Miljömagasinet 130724.