BeesDying

Why are our bees dying ?

“If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, mankind would have no more than four years to live.”

                                                                                 ~ Albert Einstein

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The exstinction of bees 

Honey bees are in danger of becoming extinct. In recent years, beekeepers have dreaded spring because they have to find out how many bees and bee hives they have lost over winter. The most of these bees die a natural death, but many of them don´t. One reason is a new and dangerous foe which is originally from Asia but has found its way to Germany: the Varroa mite.

 

The Varroa mite

Over the last few decades, bees have seen an invasion of the

mite Varroa destrucor, which is a very dangerous foe.
The female mite enters a honey bee brood cell and lays eggs on

the bee larva. The eggs hatch and the mites feed on the

developing bee, which is not killed but weakened and prone to

dying earlier than healthy bees.                                                   

In addition, adult mites suck the bodily fluids of the bees and weaken them considerably. In this process they also often infect them with viruses. Of the 18 viruses known to infect bees, 5 are transmitted by the Varroa mite.

Untreated, the presence of Varroa mites poses a serious threat to the colony's survival.

Currently, German scientists try to find environmentally compatible means of fighting the Varroa mite. However, as of yet there is no ecofriendly way of fighting this parasite.

 

Insecticides

Over recent years, new insecticides have been introduced. They

attack insects by harming their nervous systems. As a result, many

bees fall victim to these toxins. 

When bees come into contact with these toxins, they forget how to

navigate the world. So workers get lost and die alone, separated

from their hives. If this happens often enough, only the queen bee

and a few workers are left and the hive loses its ability to sustain

itself.

                      

A lack of biodiversity

By July, there is a severe lack of variety of plants due to our monocultures in commercial crops.
Therefore, bees suffer from malnutrition and a weaker immune system because of a single pollen diet. Moreover, bees don't find enough pollen to feed the winter bees which, as a result, don't live as long as they are supposed to.

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