The Red and Black

Issue date: 3/4/08 Section: News

OSTIGUY [Click to enlarge]

Talk of honeybees buzzed through the Biological Sciences building Monday as a visiting professor discussed the species' disappearing act.

Nancy Ostiguy, associate professor of entomology at Pennsylvania State University, spoke about the threats facing honeybee colonies around the country in a lecture entitled "The Continuing Saga of the Honey Bee - CCD and other Maladies."

Ostiguy described Colony Collapse Disorder as a major present-day issue facing beekeepers. The disorder occurs when a beehive is emptied, usually without signs of robbing or pest invasion. When all the worker bees in a colony die simultaneously, researchers such as Ostiguy question possible causes of death.

"Normally, there's a pretty high loss [of honeybees]," she said. But two years ago, concern among farmers increased as the number of honeybees fell dramatically.

"They are wild animals," she said. "They do as they want."

The Congressional Research Service found honeybees are the most economically valuable pollinators of agricultural crops worldwide. The dwindling of honeybee populations results in dramatic losses for farmers who rely on bees to pollinate the majority of their crops, said Michael Strand, a research professor in the department of entomology.

"Certain kinds of crops are extremely dependent on pollination," he said. "The majority of our crops are potentially impacted by this. There is a real diversity of growers that can be affected by [the lack of honeybees]."

Ostiguy works with David Hackenburg, a beekeeper from Pennsylvania who owns honey farms outside Tampa, Fla. Hackenburg lost close to two-thirds of his beehives within weeks in November 2006, Ostiguy said. Due to the sudden emptying of the beehives, he lost more than $100,000 in 2007.

Ostiguy suggested possible causes of sudden colony death, including lack of nutrition, stress, chemical residue or contamination in the wax and pathogens in the bees and brood.

"It's strange to find that nothing had robbed the honey or invaded the beehive," Ostiguy said. "The losses are not always clear because beekeepers constantly split up their colonies. Some beekeepers have not lost anything."

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University have conducted studies on migratory colonies along the northeastern coast and are awaiting the results.

The University's honeybee lab, headed by professor of entomology Keith Delaplane, researches potential causes of the disorder. Strand said it likely is attributed to several different factors, not one singular cause.

"Our lab is heavily involved in the study of varroa mites, which weaken colonies and can contribute indirectly to honeybee deaths," Strand said.

The University's honeybee lab is part of a nationwide system of labs researching the potential causes of the disorder.

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