Introduction: Honeybees, bumblebees, and solitary bees are the most important pollinators worldwide, with 35% of the world’s crop production dependent upon them (Blacquière et al. 2012). The declination of the honeybee problem is not just a problem in Canada, it is an issue worldwide. Worker bees are disappearing and not returning to their hives, this is known as colony collapse disorder (CCD) and it results in reduced colony growth and reduced queen production (Girolami et al. 2009; Whitehorn et al. 2012). In the agricultural industry chemical insecticides are extremely important for crop production; they are responsible for preserving approximately one fifth of our crop yield. Spraying insecticides produces many negative effects such as killing beneficial insects like pollinators. One method to alleviate this problem was to coat the seed with insecticide, such as neonicotinoid, so when the plant germinates and grows the chemical is distributed throughout the entirety of the plant. The goal was to protect the plant from pests that consume the crop tissue, thereby not affecting the pollinators or other beneficial species (Cresswell 2010).
Risk Characterization:
Step 1: Hazard/ Problem Identification: Neonicotinoids are applied to the surface of the seed and then are distributed throughout the entire plant, giving the plant lasting protection from insects (Girolami et al. 2009; Marzaro et al. 2011). Neonicotinoids pose a risk to many different insects including honeybees, as well as arthropods, birds and smaller mammals (Goulson 2013). Neonicotinoid is registered for use in 120 countries, and for use on over 140 crops (Whitehorn et al. 2012).
Aerial contamination can occur when the seeds are planted and the insecticide can result in being blown into the air (Marzaro et al. 2011). It was found that various concentrations of neonicotinoids are present in guttation
Albert Einstein once said, “The day bees vanish from earth… man will go not long after”. Not many people are aware, but honey bees are slowly disappearing all over the world. In 2016 the honey bees’ cousin, the Hawaiian yellow-faced bees were classified as endangered. It will not be long until the honey bee joins them at their current disappearing rate. Honey bees pollinate more than just flowers, they pollinate about a third of the world’s consumable crops. Without these tiny heroes the world would consist of a small amount of fruits and vegetables. There has not been common insight to the world about the disappearance, though many activists are fighting to save the bees. “There were nearly 3.5 million honeybee colonies in 1989…the number
The insecticide has high ability to produce the desired results. It has a broad spectrum of insect and pest control for farm crops and cereal storage. The insecticide is less toxic to mammalian organisms. The toxic levels of the insecticide to human is very low but is designed in a way that it can control some pests such as rats, California quail bird and Rainbow Trout. It is toxic to bees if it is directly sprayed on them but its dried residue is nontoxic to bees (Thompsom, 2011). This insecticide has minimal environmental hazards as compared to other insecticides. Spinosad has a long residual effect that keeps cereals well protected to a period of 2 years.
To most, the honeybee can be an annoying insect that has a powerful sting. Yet, the honeybee is so much more than just another insect. The honeybee is arguably the most vital component in the development of our food crops. With roughly 90 percent of our food crops dependent on the pollination of our honeybees, our food system, agricultural development, and diet rest on the work and well being of these buzzing insects. Unfortunately, since 2006 there has been a major decline in the population of honeybees, and has gotten progressively worse because of colony collapse disorder. The first reported increase of CCD was documented in November 2006 in Florida. By February 2007, several states began reporting major losses associated with CCD, ranging from 30% to 90%. A little over a half decade later in 2012 the attention paid towards CCD has grown substantially with more research being done as CCD continues to get worse. The main culprit for CCD, as research has suggested, is the use of pesticides on our food crops. With major corporations such as Bayer making millions and millions of dollars in profit each year in the distribution of pesticides, it is no wonder that nothing is being done to stop this practice despite evidence linking the use of pesticides and the drastic deterioration of the health of honeybees. With the continuation of the use of deadly pesticides and the vital role bees play in the pollination and development of our food crops, both the environment and our economy will be effected directly and face the potential for catastrophic results.
Over time, many bees have been disappearing and their population has been decreasing drastically. These ubiquitous species are mostly known to produce honey, however they do much more than that. Bees are an essential part of the environment and play a huge role in agriculture. They pollinate flowers and about ⅓ of the food we eat depends on bee pollination. Not only humans depend on bees too, but animals do too,and we depend on most of those animals. The pesticides used on flowers and other factors that have contributed to the decrease in the population of bees need to be stopped before this problem goes too far out of reach. This decrease can only be described as Colony Collapse Disorder and it will have severe consequences if it is not controlled.
“If the bee disappeared off the face of the Earth, man would only have four years left to live.” This statement questionably from the brilliant scientist Albert Einstein may evidently be right. In my class we were asked to pick an issue to research about, so I chose colony collapse disorder because I believe this an overlooked epidemic. UDSA reported “Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a serious problem threatening the health of honey bees and the economic stability of commercial beekeeping and pollination operations in the United States. Despite a number of claims in the general and scientific media, a cause or causes of CCD have not been identified by researchers.”
Lawrence, Timothy, and Walter S. Sheppard. "Neonicotinoid Pesticides and Honey Bees." Cru.cahe.wsu.edu. Washington State University, Nov. 2013. Web.
If preventive measures are not sufficient, “insecticides derived from natural plant extracts, natural soap or minerals or plant extracts such as neem, lemon grass, garlic, ginger and many more can be applied” (NP Agricultural Service and Partners Report, 36). Cotton farmers in Benin, for example, show that cotton can be grown without chemical pesticides, notably endosulfan (NP Agricultral Service and Partners Report, 37). Practices that can all be successful include encouraging natural predators, selecting resistant varieties, planting early maturing varieties which reduce the risk of pest attacks, use of rotation and trap crops and the use of food sprays for predators to improve the balance between useful insects and pests. (WHO,
3. Report: Bt Plant-Pesticides Risk and Benefit Assessments. FIFRA Scientific Adisory Panel. March 12, 2001. Food and Drug Administration. <http://www.epa.gov/scipoly/sap/2000/october/octoberfinal.pdf>
Honey Bee Population Decline Daisy Childs 11-20-14 Professor Garcia ENG 1027. INTRODUCTION: Apis mellifera, commonly known as the honey bee, are solely responsible for pollinating one-third of the world’s crops, and they are in danger of dying off, according to the article “Natures Dying Migrant Worker,” written by Josephine Marcotty for the Star Tribune. This honey bee population decline poses a huge threat to our environment, farmers, and economy. It is assumed by BBC News writer Zoe Gough in her article,"Wild Honey Bees: Does Their Disappearance Matter?" that all of the wild honey bees in England and Wales are gone.
The lives of humans and honeybees have been intertwined for millennia. For at least 8,000 years, humans have sought honey for applications in disciplines ranging from medicine to the culinary arts. But while humans love honey, honeybees provide a much more valuable service: pollination. As the world’s most prolific pollinator, honeybees are essential to the reproduction of many plant species, which in turn benefits other animals and plants. In fact, humans heavily rely on honeybees to pollinate our own food source, a service that is worth billions of dollars a year. Unfortunately, the honeybee population is in a severe and prolonged decline, often in the form of colony collapse disorder, in which entire colonies are seemingly abandoned by adult bees overnight. Honeybees are an indispensable component of modern agriculture, and a failure to discern and address the many causes of honeybee population decline – both manmade and natural – could have disastrous consequences for the environment and human society.
LaJeunesse, S.. Common crop pesticides kill honeybee larvae in the hive. Penn State | News. 27 January 2014.
All around the world honeybees are vanishing at an alarming rate, according to the documentary Vanishing of the Honeybees. This film features two commercial bee keepers and their fight to preserve their bee numbers. David Hackenburg was the first commercial bee keeper to go public the bee population was decreasing. Approximately two billions bees have vanished and nobody knows the reason why. Honeybees are used all across America to help pollinate monoculture crops like broccoli, watermelon, cherries, and other produce. Without the honeybees the price for fresh and local produce would be too much money. According, to this film commercial bee keeper’s help fifteen billion dollars of food get pollinated by commercial
Insect pollination as we all know, is the process that enables reproduction and fertilization by the transfer of pollen performed by insects. Insects are some of the oldest pollinators of plants. Pollinating insects date back to 140 million years ago. Since then, due to how effective insect pollinators are, these flowering plants have become the major group of terrestrial vascular plants. Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms, have imperative roles within our ecosystems, both natural and agricultural. For instance, insects provide food, fiber and shelter for wildlife and humankind alike (2007). It is commonly know that in humans, high levels of fruit and vegetable consumption are associated with decreased risk of chronic disease (Calderone 2012). Aside from these important roles, plants have also been considered as a viable option for fuel sources (Calderone 2012). There are around 300,00 species of flowering plants in the world and without pollination, the reproductive process would be very difficult since pollination causes the production of seeds (Calderone 2012). Of the 300,000 plant species worldwide, a little over 3,000 of these plants have been used as a source of food. Close to 300 of these species are grown around the world today and only 12 of these plants make up about 90 percent of the food sources in our world. These 12 include the grains...
There are 2.5 billion pounds of pesticides being applied to agricultural products each year in the United States. This is ten times more than was applied forty years ago. It is still unknown as to what type of exact effects these chemicals may have on individuals. Some farmers that have been using pesticides in their fields and developed leukemia are finding that the cause of their disease is from inhaling pesticides. These chemicals are still in use today and most of them have never been tested for the short or long-term effects that they may have on humans.
Instead of using pesticides in farming a better alternative would be biological control. This is when a natural predator is released into the crop growing area as a result the number of pests can be reduced.