A heap of dead bees was supposed to become food for a newly captured praying mantis. Instead, the pile ended up revealing a previously unrecognized suspect in colony collapse disorder a mysterious condition that for several years has been causing declines in U.S. honeybee populations, which are needed to pollinate many important crops. This new potential culprit is a bizarre and potentially devastating parasitic fly that has been taking over the bodies of honeybees (Apis mellifera) in Northern California.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Zombees
The zombie honeybee apocalypse. Actually, this is a problem that could have devastating effects on U.S. agriculture.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Still not as creepy as that fungus that does pretty much the same to ants in S. Am. jungles.
ReplyDeleteNOESSSS! The cause of the Colony Collapse Disorder are cellphones produced by Chimpy McBushhitlerstein!
ReplyDeleteI thought Chuck Heston took care of all the ants in South America.:)
ReplyDeleteYeah, as if. Most of the biomass in the Amazon basin IS ants.
ReplyDeleteOne reason the natives call it "The Green Hell"...
Catching sight of a television program called “Verminators”, I learned that, though many States suffer declining populations of honey-bees and must import the useful insects, householders (in California, I think) must by law completely destroy any bee hive which settles in a dwelling rather than have it removed by an apiarist.
ReplyDeleteAw, just having a little fun with the 50s movie with Heston and Eleanor Parker. Not a bad movie
ReplyDeleteDeadman: Does California offer anything in the way of a rationale for that waste of good bees?
ReplyDeleteDeadman, I'd say most homeowners have never witnessed a bee swarm outside their kitchen window (as I have), or they would all be frantically calling the nearest apiarist to do what no ordinary person has the courage to do.
ReplyDeleteIt's northern California; probably near Humboldt County, and its cheap Skunk Special.
ReplyDeleteCheers