Save the bees! Spring is just around the corner and bees are already starting their work on warm afternoons. But bees, both wild and domestic, native and non-native, are threatened!
Evidence continues to accumulate that radiation from wireless devices is the primary cause of colony collapse disorder (CCD) and the disappearance of wild bees. The radiation seems to affect the bee’s ability to navigate. Do you like to eat? Most of our food crops (especially in SJC) must be pollinated by bees to produce fruit, vegetables, or most important, seed. When enough bees disappear, so will people.
What can you do? It’s simple! Turn off wireless devices during hours of daylight when the temperature is above 50 degrees F (10 degrees C) and tell visitors and tourists to do the same.
Steve Ludwig, Lopez Island
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First we are told that increased solar radiation due to the thinning of the ozone layer; bee AIDS; falling queen fertility; the microsporidian fungus Nosema ceranae; or imidacloprid, a pesticide sold under the brand name Gaucho and banned by France in 1999 for spreading “mad bee disease” caused the decimation of the bee population called “colony collapse disorder” (CCD). Now the finger is being pointed at wireless or cellular communications.
The fact that is being missed here is that CCD does not affect wild or organically-raised bee colonies.
Scientists estimate there are about 4,000 different species of wild bees that are native to North America. They nest in thick grass, soil, and wood; are rarely kept in hives; and generally do not make surplus honey or form large colonies.
While the mites that have proven so devastating to domesticated honeybee populations cause little effect to the wild bees, pesticide use and habitat loss are taking their toll. Like any animal, native bees need a place to live. They need nest sites and floral resources, and if they don’t have them, they won’t be there. People can take small steps to augment wild bee populations, such as making nesting areas available. Given that about 70 percent of wild bees nest directly in the ground, not in hives, this is simpler than it seems.
Wild bees also need natural habitat to forage, which can include small woodlots, areas along a stream, or even a hedgerow between fields of crops. As an added bonus, wild bees help keep wild areas healthy.