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From Birmingham, AL:

 

Wednesday, April 04, 2007WILLIAM THORNTONNews staff writer

A mysterious disorder is wiping out commercial bee colonies in 27

states and worrying Alabama beekeepers, farmers and researchers.

 

Colony Collapse Disorder hasn't been reported in Alabama. But it has

in Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina and Florida, where beekeepers

usually keep stores of colonies for the winter, said Troy Fore, the

executive director of the Georgia-based American Beekeeping

Foundation.

 

The disorder causes worker bees to venture away from the hive without

returning, which leaves juveniles and other developing bees to die,

entomologists say. Some commercial beekeepers report losses of up to

90 percent of their hives.

 

Along with being producers of honey, commercial bee colonies are

important to agriculture as pollinators. About one-fourth of

Alabama's vegetable and fruit output relies on commercial

pollenization, said Dennis Barclift, an apiarist with the Alabama

Department of Agriculture.

 

He said no definitive cause has been found for the disorder, but a

host of theories are out there - pesticides, viruses, imported bees,

even stress.

 

" There's been no real pathogen out there to distinguish this, "

Barclift said. " It seems more of a multiple series of events. "

 

Researchers first began noticing the problem when a beekeeper in

Pennsylvania reported it. Investigators believe it might have begun

appearing last spring. Though it is normal for bee colonies to

sustain heavy seasonal losses, those occurring this year are much

larger, more widespread and seem to be occurring simultaneously.

 

The state department of agriculture has been keeping track through

contacts with beekeepers and investigating if someone reports a high

percentage of bees disappearing.

 

Alabama prohibits migratory commercial beekeepers - those who truck

their bees across the nation to assist with pollinating crops and

honey production - from operating in the state. They are allowed to

pass through to other destinations.

 

Beekeepers are also prohibited from bringing colonies into Alabama

from out of state, to prevent the spread of disease. Alabama is among

the nation's leaders in commercial queen and package bee production,

according to the state agricultural department.

 

Alabama has about 2,500 beekeepers across the state, many of them

hobbyists. Jimmy Carmack of Center Point has about 80 colonies of

bees in Odenville, Huntsville, Clanton and other locations, averaging

about 60,000 bees with each colony. He produces Alabama Pure Honey

which is sold in stores statewide. He said he hasn't seen signs of

the disorder but has kept an eye on developments nationwide.

 

Buddy Adamson with the Alabama Bee and Honey Producers, a division of

the Alabama Farmers Federation, said he also is unaware of losses in

the state. The national cases seem similar to another widespread

colony loss about five years ago, he said.

 

The problem could have a disastrous impact on crops. Commercial

pollenization accounted for about $15 billion in agricultural

production nationwide in 2000.

 

Cucumbers, melons, blueberries, peaches and apples are all grown in

Alabama in different regions and employ some kind of commercial bee

use.

 

Fore said a group of federal and university researchers and others

are working to identify the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder and

provide preventive measures. Until then, Barclift said beekeepers

should keep their hives strong with plenty of bees and a good new

queen and treat hives for the varroa mite, a species of honeybee

parasite.

 

" We're also telling them not to use too many pesticides, " he

said. " The problem is that until we know what causes it, there's not

much we can do otherwise. "

 

E-mail: wthornton

 

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