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Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

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11–20 of 35 posts

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#11
post #4

Does that mean that neonicotinoids are now confirmed to be a major factor contributing to the bee colony collapse?

Not necessarily. Schaafsma is located in Ontario, which is a jurisdiction that had already effectively banned the use of neonics, even before the federal government finished conducting their research on the matter.

Legislation alone is enough to incentivize him creating this new planter design.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#12
I'm with the filtered approach. I dont really trust Krupe's work. yeah, statistically significant on 12 fields .... 2% is right in the range of the stated yield benefit, .5 - 5%, which farmers who actually do business seem to think is economically beneficial.

"In another study, Krupke found that the seed treatments weren't of much benefit to corn yields... the results from all the sites, the average yield from the treated seed was about 2 percent higher, but Krupke says that difference is not statistically or economically significant "

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#13

Best approach: Use no poison. An alien may say: This humans seem to be bit insane - they put a lot of poison on their fields where they grow their food in order to protect their weak breeded plants against pets while they do everything that this pests have a easy run. Maybe we should search for another planet where the creatures seem to be more sane.

or sell them more poison.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#14

Best approach: Use no poison. An alien may say: This humans seem to be bit insane - they put a lot of poison on their fields where they grow their food in order to protect their weak breeded plants against pets while they do everything that this pests have a easy run. Maybe we should search for another planet where the creatures seem to be more sane.

An "alien" watching us would understand the nuance of the situation instead of thinking like a children's book caricature.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#15
When we talk about "saving bees", most people think about honey bees. I'm a hobbyist beekeeper, and honey bees have a good chance of surviving thanks to people who care about them.

However, in most places, there are dozens or hundreds of other bee species. We don't know or hear much about them. They are solitary bees, various types of bumblebees, etc. They are the ones disappearing, and fast. Unfortunately, they are the first victims of growing urban areas, mono-culturing and pesticides.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#17
post #14

Best approach: Use no poison. An alien may say: This humans seem to be bit insane - they put a lot of poison on their fields where they grow their food in order to protect their weak breeded plants against pets while they do everything that this pests have a easy run. Maybe we should search for another planet where the creatures seem to be more sane.

An "alien" watching us would understand the nuance of the situation instead of thinking like a children's book caricature.

Well perhaps an alien child would assess us like that.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#18
post #10

Best approach: Use no poison. An alien may say: This humans seem to be bit insane - they put a lot of poison on their fields where they grow their food in order to protect their weak breeded plants against pets while they do everything that this pests have a easy run. Maybe we should search for another planet where the creatures seem to be more sane.

> while they do everything that this pests have a easy run Which is exactly why we can produce so much food / acre. Land use would need to go up significantly, and thus the price of food, in order to be able to use "natural" methods of pest control. This would affect developing countries the most.

[deleted]

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#19
post #9
post #4

Does that mean that neonicotinoids are now confirmed to be a major factor contributing to the bee colony collapse?

'One of the factors', yes. There are three causes, which are separate but related: - pesticide use (neonics, mostly) - 'varroa destructor' parasites - loss of bee habitat ('green deserts') This triple-whammy is too much for bees, but that's not to say that solving just one issue (or even two) would be 'enough' of a solution. The first one will be solved (I think) by public awareness. There is a clear direction in the…

Thank you for the insights.

Are there any numbers comparing colony collapse between normal and organic beehives?

I imagine that bees used for producing organic honey will have access to greater variety of plants, since their immediate surroundings doesn't contain pesticides, which obviously also lowers their exposure to pesticides.

I'm aware that bees used for organic honey travels outside their designated organic habitat, but all things equal, they should be better of with regard to the 1st and 3rd factor of colony collapse, than non-organic bees.

Re: Two Different Approaches to Saving Bees

#20
post #15

When we talk about "saving bees", most people think about honey bees. I'm a hobbyist beekeeper, and honey bees have a good chance of surviving thanks to people who care about them. However, in most places, there are dozens or hundreds of other bee species. We don't know or hear much about them. They are solitary bees, various types of bumblebees, etc. They are the ones disappearing, and fast. Unfortunately, they are…

I make mason bee houses(hotels, whatever) where ever I end up living (renting, moved around a bit). They're pretty awesome, no stingers, pollinate everything, and the houses are easy to build.
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