Studies Link Pesticides To Bee Colony Collapse Disorder

T Murphy writes "Neonicotinoid pesticides, designed to attack insects such as beetles and aphids, have been shown to harm bees' ability to navigate back to the hive. While initially assumed safe in low enough, non-fatal doses for bees, two papers have shown that may not be the case. Although the studies don't directly study the Colony Collapse Disorder, the scientists believe these pesticides are likely a contributing factor."

Re:In Other words...

[MightyMartian]

Considering the importance of bees to agriculture, I think the potential of any link between pesticides and colony collapses warrants both extreme concern and funding.

But hey, maybe you're looking forward to do the day we eat nothing but algal cultures or soylent green.

Re:In Other words...

[BradleyUffner]

Considering the importance of bees to agriculture, I think the potential of any link between pesticides and colony collapses warrants both extreme concern and funding.

But hey, maybe you're looking forward to do the day we eat nothing but algal cultures or soylent green.

I'm looking forward to the day when we use logic and reason instead of emotion and fear to get science funding and sway public opinion.

Re:Little bland on details

[UnknowingFool]

Also note that the scientists are not declaring that the pesticides are 100% the cause as they don't have the evidence to support that. They are saying that it may be the cause. Bees are very important to agriculture so more research should be done. This is this first plausible link that scientists have had in figuring out the problem.

Re:In Other words...

[Githaron]

I'm looking forward to the day when we use logic and reason instead of emotion and fear to get science funding and sway public opinion.

I am not sure if you are including this situation in your thinking. The logical move is to find alternative pesticides that do not harm the bees. Bees pollinate our crops in most areas of the world. We need them.

Re:It's Not as Simple as You Make It Out to Be

[sjames]

Actually, there are perfectly valid ways to quantify these things, they just didn't WANT to and nobody made them.

Even before modern science, herbalists knew to watch how animals behave after ingesting something rather than just seeing if they live or die.

You see a man drink a glass of something on the table. He retches instantly and falls to his hands and knees and crawls away slowly babbling about the queen of grapes going to war with the California raisins. The next day he's fine. Conclusion, the substance in the glass is a perfectly good milk substitute for the school lunch program?