By John Vibes In recent years, the world has finally begun to take notice of the drastically declining bee populations, and people are starting to understand the impact that this could have on the ecosystem. Slowly, people who care are working to correct this problem…
By Mayukh Saha Over the past few decades, bees have been disappearing. The number of honeybees in America is only half of the population that existed fifty years ago. Many species are on the verge of becoming extinct. While no one reason can be pointed…
By Elias Marat While the role played by honeybees and wild bees as important pollinators is well known, the bumblebee also plays a crucial role in maintaining the health and viability of crops such as chili peppers and tomatoes. And now, researchers at the National…
More “intensive” beekeeping does not raise the risk of diseases that harm or kill the insects, new research suggests. Intensive agriculture – where animals or plants are kept crowded together in very high densities – is thought to result in higher rates of disease spreading….
By Elias Marat The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has suspended its annual surveys of the honeybee population as the federal agency increasingly turns toward representing big agricultural interests rather than regulating them. Citing the need for budget cuts, the Trump administration’s suspension of the…
By Arjun Walia In Brief The Facts: The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced “emergency” approvals to spray sulfoxaflor — an insecticide considered “very highly toxic” to bees — on nearly 14 million acres of crops known to attract bees. Reflect On: Why do corrupt federal…
By Tyler Durden The total number of honey bee colonies across Europe plunged 16% over the winter 2017–18, according to COLOSS (Prevention of honey bee COlony LOSSes), an international, non-profit organization based in Switzerland, tasked with the goals of protecting honey bees. Allison Gray, the lead researcher…
By Elias Marat The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted “emergency” clearance to sulfoxaflor – an insecticide that, by the agency’s own admission, is considered “very highly toxic” to bees. Sulfoxaflor will be used on over 16 million acres of crops that are attractive to bees….
Up to 13% of US beekeepers are in danger of losing their colonies due to pesticides sprayed to contain the Zika virus, new research suggests. Zika – claimed to cause severe brain defects in unborn children – is alleged to be spread by mosquitoes, so…
By Heather Callaghan, Editor In 2016, France’s National Assembly voted to totally ban the bee-killing pesticides known as neonicotinoids by September 2018. Now, the time has come to make good on that plan, the country announced on Saturday. While farmers are incensed by this move, beekeepers are even angrier. Earlier…
By Jessica Corbett While the Trump administration recently moved to roll back a ban on neonicotinoid pesticides in U.S. wildlife refuges, conservationists are celebrating Canada “for recognizing the overwhelming body of scientific evidence on neonics and phasing out these dangerous pesticides.” SEE: Trump Reverses Ban On GMOs And Bee-Killing Pesticides In…
By Melinda Cafferty, Natural Blaze A Polish startup has come up with a whimsically innovative way of turning a common waste product into an “energy drink” for pollinators. GNN reports: Bee Saving Paper is a biodegradable paper that is packed full of energy-rich glucose that is nutritious…
Current Administration Putting Profits Ahead of Bees WASHINGTON – The Bee Informed Partnership released results on May 23, 2018 of its annual survey of honeybee colony losses. Beekeepers reported 40.1 percent bee colony losses between April 2017 and April 2018. However, these numbers only represent 6.6 percent…
By Kelsey K. Graham, Michigan State University Declines in bee populations around the world have been widely reported over the past several decades. Much attention has focused on honey bees, which commercial beekeepers transport all over the United States to pollinate crops. However, while honey…
By Jessica Corbett The European Union on Friday voted to ban agricultural pesticides that are harmful to bees and which scientists have warned could have a broader impact on the global food chain. Faced with mounting scientific evidence that bee-poisoningneonicotinoids, or neonics, could cause an “ecological armageddon,” European regulators…
By Cat Ellis Last night, my husband attended our beekeeping association meeting. He was looking forward to it all day. Talking with other “bee people” is exciting, chatting about the upcoming spring, opening up the hives after winter, installing new bees, etc. I couldn’t wait for…
By Natural Blaze Turns out that Monsanto’s Big Ag weedkiller and fungicides might lure bees like….well, like a flower to a bee. And like a sweet poison… Recently, we reported the a surprising culprit behind the bee decline might actually be fungicides. It does appear that…
By Derrick Broze Two new studies confirm the danger of neonicotinoid insecticides. After years of back and forth speculation and conflicting studies from countries around the world, it seems fair to say neonicotinoids insecticides are causing dramatic weakening of honeybee hives. The “neonics” are a…
By Heather Callaghan, Editor Probiotics could improve survival rates in honey bees exposed to pesticide, study finds In yet another study, Canadian researchers were able to demonstrate the power of probiotics in fostering strength to bees who are unavoidably exposed to pesticides. This time it was Lawson Health Research…
Farmer and environmental friendly alternatives should replace toxic neonic seed coatings WASHINGTON – A new report, Alternatives to Neonicotinoid Insecticide-Coated Corn Seed: Agroecological Methods are better for Farmers and the Environment, released recently from Center for Food Safety, shows that environmentally harmful neonicotinoid (neonic) insecticide seed…
