Colony Collapse Disorder
Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is a syndrome that is characterized by the sudden loss of adult bees from the hive. Many possible explanations for CCD have been proposed, but no one primary cause has been found. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has indicated in a report to Congress that a combination of factors may be causing CCD, including pesticides, pathogens, and parasites, all of which have been found at high levels in affected bee hives.
For the majority of pesticides that are registered in the United States, EPA only requires a short-term contact toxicity test on adult honeybees. In some cases, the agency also receives short-term oral toxicity tests, which are required in Europe. EPA's testing requirements do not account for sub-lethal effects to bees or effects on brood or larvae. Their testing requirements are also not designed to determine effects in bees from exposure to systemic pesticides. With Colony Collapse Disorder, whole hive tests in the field are needed in order to determine the effects of a pesticide on bee colonies. To date, there are very few scientifically valid whole hive studies that can be used to determine the effects of pesticides on bee colonies.
A March 2012 study conducted in Europe, in which minuscule electronic localization devices were fixed on bees, has shown that, even with very low levels of pesticide in the bee's diet, a high proportion of bees (more than one third) suffers form orientation disorder and is unable to come back to the hive. The pesticide concentration was order of magnitudes smaller than the lethal dose used in the pesticide's current use. The pesticide under study, brand-named "Cruiser" in Europe (Thiamethoxam, a Neonicotinoid insecticide), although allowed in France by annually renewed exceptional authorization, could be banned in the coming years by the European Commission.
Read more about this topic: Pesticide Toxicity To Bees
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