Pollination plays a crucial role in food production, which means that bees are intricately tied to the success of the process. Over the last decade, however, concern for these small pests has grown increasingly urgent, as bee colonies continue to see huge hive losses. The EU took action recently decided to ban neonicotinoids, the most popular insecticide in the world, for two years. Many believe that neonicotinoids are linked to the hive losses, including the European Food Safety Agency.

Beekeepers, charged with the task of moving hives into California to fertilize almond trees this year, scrambled to make that process happen. The situation on the west coast highlighted an issue that could have far-reaching consequences around the world. What does it all mean?

California Almond Orchards

Almonds are big business in California; they are the number one overseas agricultural export. The orchards are laid out across hundreds of thousands of acres, and in order to make sure the trees are pollinated properly, approximately one and half million bee colonies must be brought in to do the job. This year, because of the hive losses, the pollination process was only achieved through a nationwide plea to bring in the necessary number of bees.

Concerns For Food Production

The almond orchards are unique, in that they need a significant number of bees in order to complete the pollination process. Therefore, although other crops have not yet been affected by hive losses, they will be if the current trend does not begin to reverse itself soon. Some beekeepers reported losing half of their hives this year, and the bees that were left were not always as efficient and effective as bees from previous colonies.

The European Commission is certainly taking the situation seriously. They recently decided to ban neonicotinoids, the most popular insecticide in the world, for two years. Many believe that neonicotinoids are linked to the hive losses, including the European Food Safety Agency. The move comes as scientists are speaking out about how a shortage of bees will affect worldwide food production. While neonicotinoids are certainly not the only factor in play, they do seem to confuse bees and make them less likely to find their way back to their hives. They could also make the pests more susceptible to diseases. Still, there is some debate about exactly how harmful neonicotinoids really are.

U.S. Reaction

In response to EU’s ban and concerns raised by a number of commercial beekeepers and environmental advocacy groups, the Environmental Protection Agency is taking a second look at neonicotinoids. One way they hope to protect bees is by cutting back on how much neonicotinoid-contaminated dust is sprayed at planting time, since bees are particularly likely to come across the insecticide at that time.

Neonicotinoids are used prominently in the United States, particularly on corn, cotton, rice, grains, fruits and vegetables. The insecticide was widely accepted in the 90s because the risk of human exposure is low compared to previously used products. However, neonicotinoids remain present as plants grow and develop, which means there are a number of ways that bees could be exposed to them, something that was not considered when the insecticide was first introduced. Because of how frequently neonicotinoids are used, wild and domesticated bees are exposed to the insecticide often, which makes for a very uncertain future. Still, while neonicotinoids were present in damaged hives, the exact reason for hive losses can’t yet be pinpointed.

The only thing we know for certain is that there will be fewer bees this year than in years past. As the issue becomes more serious, both private citizens and Odessa pest control technicians are doing their part to help. Wild bees making a “nuisance” of themselves are more likely to be relocated than destroyed, which certainly helps. However, the losses of domesticated bees may be too great to overcome.

About the author: Chris is a blogger for a Texas based pest control company.

Related articles

• Beepocalypse Redux: Honeybees Are Still Dying – and We Still Don’t Know Why.
• EPA Slapped with Lawsuit over Ongoing Bee Deaths.
• Bees, neonicotinoids and pollination: moving forward

Guest Post Published by Thomas Ballantyne

Pest Control Links Round-Up: 5 For Friday

Atlanta Millipede Infestations Common

So what exactly are millipedes? Are they dangerous? Are they even considered pests? How do you get rid of them? Here’s what you need to know. More…

5 Fun Facts About Ants

Think you know all there is to know about ants? Think again! Here’s a comical view, with some amazing ant facts. Who knew ants are feminists? More…

How German Cockroaches Easily Infest Homes – And Effective Techniques To Stop Them

German cockroaches are considered one of the most challenging pest infestations to eliminate – even with professional treatment. Learn how to implement a successful prevention strategy, here.

CAUTION: Stinging and Venomous Caterpillars

The four major stinging caterpillars occurring in Florida are the puss caterpillar, saddleback caterpillar, Io moth caterpillar and hag caterpillar. These caterpillars have tiny hairs or spines that release a toxin. Contact may require hospitalization. More…

Carpenter Ants: Preventing Them Before They Become a Problem

Our pest of the week, the Carpenter ant can be quite the destructive pest. There are a few steps you can take before they become a serious problem. More…

Pest Of The Week: The Carpenter Ant

The Carpenter ant (Camponotus vicinus) makes it’s nest inside wood; dead trees or stumps, wood piles, rotten home structures, and old cracking furniture to be exact. It because of this, many home owners confuse the Carpenter ant for the termite.

Carpenter ants have black bodies, with a dark red thorax. Their abdomen is covered with a fine hair that forms a ring around the ant. They measure in length somewhere between ¼ of an inch to ½ of an inch. Note, Carpenter ants do not eat wood. They do eat food debris, like crumbs and sweets. It’s this food that foraging ants are looking for when they enter your home.

If you see sawdust piles around your home or property, you may have Carpenter ants. If this is the case, seek the services of a licensed ant control professional.

Related articles

• Ant problems on the rise in Portland area
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Anthony Ball

Transcript from Ant Control-Professional Bug Pesticides video:

Pest Control Professional and Ant Control Specialist Speaks: “What does Raid and professional sprays do? That’s what we want to talk about next. Let’s talk about this picture down here that I drew. Let’s pretend like this black mass is the colony itself, it’s where all the young are breeding. It’s where all the worker minors, the eighty percent of the colony, are thriving, right in here. Forgers will often times forge outside, but they’ll also forge inside, like on the floors or up on the counter tops. That’s what the little black dots represent.”

“Other bug companies use a pump can to pump up their spray, their standard bug spray, their insect spray, and they spray along the floorboards right here. If someone has an ant problem, they’ll spray right here. If it’s a really bad problem, they’ll tell the consumer to open up your cabinet and take all the stuff out, and spray all over in here, and they spray inside, everywhere. They even might spray up on the counter top. And they’re just using a general pesticide. Usually it’s some sort of a pyrethroid; that means it’s been dried from a chrysanthemum flower, very similar to the products that we use.”

“But, they’re spraying it all over here. And you’ve got to ask yourself, well, what does all of that spray do? And I’ll tell you what all that spray does. It will kill any ant that’s out right now at the time. But, this spray, as is Raid and most professional sprays, they’re all repellents. Ants can tell that they’re there, so ants will not cross them. In other words, the colony right here will just refuse to come out. They just won’t come out. And so what you’ll see is a consumer who’s had another pest control company, but if this house is in a neighborhood that’s infested with ants and they have ants, what’s going to happen is the guy comes in and sprays, everything’s cool for about three to six weeks. And then BAM, the ants are right back in the same place, or three feet to the right. Or the guy comes out and sprays and this colony moves, and it starts showing up in the kitchen, or the bathroom, or just some place other than where he sprayed. This is why people think that when you spray, bugs move from one location to the next.”

“Most pests can’t tell that the insecticides are down, but ants can, and they won’t cross it, so they’ll move their colony. Another thing that can happen is let’s say there’s another cabinet over here, right? This is the kitchen and there’s another cabinet over here. This is the pantry. And there’s a whole bunch of stuff in the pantry. And there were just a tremendous amount of forgers forging in here. And the guy says, well, I’m going to go to the source, and he sprays all over here. But, all of these ants can’t go back across the line, they won’t cross it again. So you actually have divided the colony. This is called budding, and what will happen is very likely one of these normal ants, one of these normal working ants will mutate slightly into a queen, and they’ll develop a new colony. It’s called budding.”

“You have to get the queen and you’ve got to get a large majority of their workers to successfully eliminate the colony.”

- Bulwark Exterminating Ant Control