Abstract
The role played by bees as crop pollinators cannot be disputed. This is the reason why colony collapse disorder or honey bee depopulation syndrome attracts the attention of many scientists and beekeepers, not forgetting the general public. Mystery stands behind the dwindling of bee colonies in America and Europe, a phenomenon that has been observed for a long period now. Reports of colony collapse disorder emerged in the mid-nineteenth century and have continued to be observed across the globe. This paper is an attempt to examine the honey bee depopulation syndrome and endeavor to unravel the mystery behind. It attempts to establish the causes of the phenomenon. Although there has been dedicated research in attempting to understand the issue, what has been put forward as an explanation is still a string of postulations and therefore the cause of colony collapse disorder in honeybee populations still remains an elusive topic. Despite the fact that what has been given as the likely cause of CCD is still based on theories, chemicals stand high chances as principal cause.
A brief introduction of the phenomenon
Colony collapse disorder is a term that has been used in apiculture to describe the continued disappearance or death of worker bees from the colonies or beehives since the early 70s. Although the term found its profound usage in 2006 in describing the mysterious vanishing of the North American honey bee colonies in 2006, the honey bees have continued to vanish in the past and such outbreaks were observed as early as 1869 (Ohio State University Agricultural Research Group 2009). This phenomenon has a significant global economic connotation given that bees are a major constituent of global crop pollinators. It, therefore, attracts significant scholarly and research attention. It must be noted that it is not uncommon for bees to disappear especially during winter seasons. However, when the disappearances become unusual in terms of the magnitude it becomes worrying, not only to the farmer but to the scientists as well. Attributions given to losses in honey bees in the past include pesticide effects, diseases and parasites that attack honey bees, for example, the tracheal and varroa mites. Another causal agent that was labeled for the losses of honey bees in the past was habitat loss. Nevertheless, there was also a gradual decline in the business of beekeeping. This phenomenon is also called honey bee depopulation syndrome.
It has been established that colony collapse disorder is infectious as the bees that attempt to use the left of a dying colony become infected and end up facing or exhibiting similar symptoms.
Background information on the groups of chemicals pertinent to the Case Study
Scientists and researchers have been keen to attempt to uncover the mystery behind the honey bee depopulation syndrome. In their attempt, they have sought to identify the causal agents to these disappearances. Scientists have found that various groups of chemicals like pesticides may form part of the contributing causal agents. In addition, several theories have been formulated to debunk the phenomenon.
Analysis of the key potential causes of the phenomena
The toxicity of pesticides and other chemicals may not be an easy subject to investigate. One group of chemicals that has been touted as contributing to the deaths of honey bees are pesticides. Pesticides are frequently assumed to have a hand in the mortality of honey bees since most of the pesticides used for pest control are also harmful to honey bees. Nevertheless, there have been postulations that the pesticides used are only lethal when used to a certain level. That aside, the bees are still highly likely to be affected at the colony level since the bees may suffer reduced honey production and disappearance of foragers. Imidacloprid- treated sunflower crops lead to the disruption of foraging, dwindling of colonies especially due to failure by worker bees to return to the hives as they die in the fields.
Pesticides have been found to cause changes in the bee dance language and orientation abilities of the bees. Additionally, pesticide exposure significantly reduces the lifespan of the worker bees and makes the supply of essentials to the hives limited.
Antibiotics and miticides have also been blamed for the vanishing bee colonies. Usage of antibiotics and miticides on the bee colonies has been associated with the CCD (Colony collapse disorder). This allegation sprouts from the fact that a bigger percentage of the beekeepers who report being affected by Colony collapse disorder also confirm using these chemicals. However, probably more research is still required in this area to bring out the relationship that might exist between the chemicals and CCD. As a fact, there may be possibility that not most of the chemicals used by the bee farmers have been tested against the effects they would have on the bees. If that be the case, then only thorough research would help unravel the possibility of the chemicals having any effect on the bees. Therefore, in my opinion, there is still no sufficient evidence to claim that chemicals could be the cause.
Besides the miticides and antibiotics, neonicotinoid pesticides are also being examined for any connection with the disappearance of bees especially in Canada. Some insecticides are taken up the plant from the soil moving through the plant tissue and they intoxicate bees when the bees search for nectar in the pollen (Burdick & Caron 2006). Systemic insecticides are therefore likely to play a major role in the death and disappearance of bees from their colonies. Some of these nicotine-based insecticides have effects that are consistent with those of CCD.
Scientific inquiry into the role played by the nicotine- based insecticides in the vanishing of bees has been fuelled by the fact that bee colonies in areas where such chemicals have been used have pointed toward the same symptoms as those of CCD (Ohio State University Agricultural Research Group 2009). Thus, Imidacloprid and fipronil have been found to be toxic to bees as a result of being used as pesticides in Europe in the past. Among the effects of these chemicals include impaired olfactory learning performance, reduced flight activity in the bees and decreased olfactory discrimination since the chemicals are also carried along with the bees to the colonies into the honey and as residue in the pollen.
Apart from the chemicals identified above, some toxic chemicals are also produced from GM crops. Although no sufficient investigation has been carried out to determine the effect of Bt toxin, this chemical is produced by some GM crops. However, connecting GM crops with CCD elicits a controversial debate because there are areas where such crops are not grown yet they have reported CCD cases; more so in Canada and Europe (Decourtye et al 2005). In my opinion, CCD could be caused by a number of causative agents as I have pointed above and one cannot just point on one agent as the cause.
Summary
Examination of colony collapse disorder with respect to the causes should be done via a multi-faceted perspective since research into the potential causes of CCD shows that the phenomenon could result from a number of causal agents. Although there are several postulations pointing to the causes of colony collapse disorder, they still remain theories as an in-depth examination is yet to be done for conclusive results with statistical significance. Pathogen loads have been connected with the disorder (USDA 2009). Some researchers have argued that pesticides have been hypothesized to have a negative effect on the bees while others maintain that CCD could be as a result of pathogenic microbes or viruses. Other claims point out that the collapse of bee colonies could be caused by the weakening of colonies by a perfect storm of stresses, which first compromises the immune system of the bees. Such stresses may include migratory stress as bees are transported from one point to another for pollination across the US and Canada. Some postulations point to a failure by the beekeepers to recognize the cause of the disappearances, poor nutrition (probably due to crowding in the beehives), scarcity of pollen or nectar and exposure to contaminated water.
Reference:
Decourtye, A., J. Devillers, E. Genecque, K. LeMenach, H. Budzinski, S. Cluzeau, and M.H. Pham-Delègue, (2005) Comparative sublethal toxicity of nine pesticides on olfactory learning performances of the honeybee Apis mellifera. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 48:242-250.
USDA (2009) Colony Collapse Disorder Action Plan: Accessible from URL: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/br/ccd
Burdick, E., & D.M. Caron. (2006) MAAREC beekeeper survey. http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/pdfs/MAARECSurveyPub.pdf
Ohio State University Agricultural Research Group (2009) http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/agnic/bee/ccd.htm
Get Professional Assignment Help Cheaply
Are you busy and do not have time to handle your assignment? Are you scared that your paper will not make the grade? Do you have responsibilities that may hinder you from turning in your assignment on time? Are you tired and can barely handle your assignment? Are your grades inconsistent?
Whichever your reason is, it is valid! You can get professional academic help from our service at affordable rates. We have a team of professional academic writers who can handle all your assignments.
Why Choose Our Academic Writing Service?
- Plagiarism free papers
- Timely delivery
- Any deadline
- Skilled, Experienced Native English Writers
- Subject-relevant academic writer
- Adherence to paper instructions
- Ability to tackle bulk assignments
- Reasonable prices
- 24/7 Customer Support
- Get superb grades consistently
Online Academic Help With Different Subjects
Literature
Students barely have time to read. We got you! Have your literature essay or book review written without having the hassle of reading the book. You can get your literature paper custom-written for you by our literature specialists.
Finance
Do you struggle with finance? No need to torture yourself if finance is not your cup of tea. You can order your finance paper from our academic writing service and get 100% original work from competent finance experts.
Computer science
Computer science is a tough subject. Fortunately, our computer science experts are up to the match. No need to stress and have sleepless nights. Our academic writers will tackle all your computer science assignments and deliver them on time. Let us handle all your python, java, ruby, JavaScript, php , C+ assignments!
Psychology
While psychology may be an interesting subject, you may lack sufficient time to handle your assignments. Don’t despair; by using our academic writing service, you can be assured of perfect grades. Moreover, your grades will be consistent.
Engineering
Engineering is quite a demanding subject. Students face a lot of pressure and barely have enough time to do what they love to do. Our academic writing service got you covered! Our engineering specialists follow the paper instructions and ensure timely delivery of the paper.
Nursing
In the nursing course, you may have difficulties with literature reviews, annotated bibliographies, critical essays, and other assignments. Our nursing assignment writers will offer you professional nursing paper help at low prices.
Sociology
Truth be told, sociology papers can be quite exhausting. Our academic writing service relieves you of fatigue, pressure, and stress. You can relax and have peace of mind as our academic writers handle your sociology assignment.
Business
We take pride in having some of the best business writers in the industry. Our business writers have a lot of experience in the field. They are reliable, and you can be assured of a high-grade paper. They are able to handle business papers of any subject, length, deadline, and difficulty!
Statistics
We boast of having some of the most experienced statistics experts in the industry. Our statistics experts have diverse skills, expertise, and knowledge to handle any kind of assignment. They have access to all kinds of software to get your assignment done.
Law
Writing a law essay may prove to be an insurmountable obstacle, especially when you need to know the peculiarities of the legislative framework. Take advantage of our top-notch law specialists and get superb grades and 100% satisfaction.
What discipline/subjects do you deal in?
We have highlighted some of the most popular subjects we handle above. Those are just a tip of the iceberg. We deal in all academic disciplines since our writers are as diverse. They have been drawn from across all disciplines, and orders are assigned to those writers believed to be the best in the field. In a nutshell, there is no task we cannot handle; all you need to do is place your order with us. As long as your instructions are clear, just trust we shall deliver irrespective of the discipline.
Are your writers competent enough to handle my paper?
Our essay writers are graduates with bachelor's, masters, Ph.D., and doctorate degrees in various subjects. The minimum requirement to be an essay writer with our essay writing service is to have a college degree. All our academic writers have a minimum of two years of academic writing. We have a stringent recruitment process to ensure that we get only the most competent essay writers in the industry. We also ensure that the writers are handsomely compensated for their value. The majority of our writers are native English speakers. As such, the fluency of language and grammar is impeccable.
What if I don’t like the paper?
There is a very low likelihood that you won’t like the paper.
Reasons being:
- When assigning your order, we match the paper’s discipline with the writer’s field/specialization. Since all our writers are graduates, we match the paper’s subject with the field the writer studied. For instance, if it’s a nursing paper, only a nursing graduate and writer will handle it. Furthermore, all our writers have academic writing experience and top-notch research skills.
- We have a quality assurance that reviews the paper before it gets to you. As such, we ensure that you get a paper that meets the required standard and will most definitely make the grade.
In the event that you don’t like your paper:
- The writer will revise the paper up to your pleasing. You have unlimited revisions. You simply need to highlight what specifically you don’t like about the paper, and the writer will make the amendments. The paper will be revised until you are satisfied. Revisions are free of charge
- We will have a different writer write the paper from scratch.
- Last resort, if the above does not work, we will refund your money.
Will the professor find out I didn’t write the paper myself?
Not at all. All papers are written from scratch. There is no way your tutor or instructor will realize that you did not write the paper yourself. In fact, we recommend using our assignment help services for consistent results.
What if the paper is plagiarized?
We check all papers for plagiarism before we submit them. We use powerful plagiarism checking software such as SafeAssign, LopesWrite, and Turnitin. We also upload the plagiarism report so that you can review it. We understand that plagiarism is academic suicide. We would not take the risk of submitting plagiarized work and jeopardize your academic journey. Furthermore, we do not sell or use prewritten papers, and each paper is written from scratch.
When will I get my paper?
You determine when you get the paper by setting the deadline when placing the order. All papers are delivered within the deadline. We are well aware that we operate in a time-sensitive industry. As such, we have laid out strategies to ensure that the client receives the paper on time and they never miss the deadline. We understand that papers that are submitted late have some points deducted. We do not want you to miss any points due to late submission. We work on beating deadlines by huge margins in order to ensure that you have ample time to review the paper before you submit it.
Will anyone find out that I used your services?
We have a privacy and confidentiality policy that guides our work. We NEVER share any customer information with third parties. Noone will ever know that you used our assignment help services. It’s only between you and us. We are bound by our policies to protect the customer’s identity and information. All your information, such as your names, phone number, email, order information, and so on, are protected. We have robust security systems that ensure that your data is protected. Hacking our systems is close to impossible, and it has never happened.
How our Assignment Help Service Works
1. Place an order
You fill all the paper instructions in the order form. Make sure you include all the helpful materials so that our academic writers can deliver the perfect paper. It will also help to eliminate unnecessary revisions.
2. Pay for the order
Proceed to pay for the paper so that it can be assigned to one of our expert academic writers. The paper subject is matched with the writer’s area of specialization.
3. Track the progress
You communicate with the writer and know about the progress of the paper. The client can ask the writer for drafts of the paper. The client can upload extra material and include additional instructions from the lecturer. Receive a paper.
4. Download the paper
The paper is sent to your email and uploaded to your personal account. You also get a plagiarism report attached to your paper.
PLACE THIS ORDER OR A SIMILAR ORDER WITH US TODAY AND GET A PERFECT SCORE!!!
