Colonies w/ IBDS have largest risk of death

[T Beek]

In a "first" ever epidemiological research study conducted with 80 colonies over an entire season in cooperation with NC State, U of Maryland, Penn State and USDA, found that a little understood disease IBDS (idiopathic brood disease syndrome) is the largest cause of colony mortality and a great factor for predicting the eventual death of a bee colony.

Colonies with IBDS had a risk factor of 3.2, meaning those colonies were 3.2 times more likely to die than others, including those with and without varroa mites.  Low levels of mites made little difference if the colony also had IBDS.

Coming in second?  QUEEN EVENTS with a risk factor of 3.1.  I think all beeks know this, some just don't want to admit it  :-D

IBDS is not understood very well but the study proves it is a significant problem and another part of the CCD Mystery.

The published paper can be found in the February issue of PREVENTIVE VETERINARY MEDICINE.  Something else to worry about, heh?

[Stromnessbees]

Another red herring trying to distract away from neonics?

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167587712002656

'Idiopathic brood disease syndrome and queen events as precursors of colony mortality in migratory beekeeping operations in the eastern United States'
Dennis vanEngelsdorp
David R. Tarpy
Eugene J. Lengerich
Jeffery S. Pettis


Abstract
Using standard epidemiological methods, this study set out to quantify the risk associated with exposure to easily diagnosed factors on colony mortality and morbidity in three migratory beekeeping operations. Fifty-six percent of all colonies monitored during the 10-month period died. The relative risk (RR) that a colony would die over the short term (∼50 days) was appreciably increased in colonies diagnosed with Idiopathic Brood Disease Syndrome (IBDS), a condition where brood of different ages appear molten on the bottom of cells (RR = 3.2), or with a “queen event” (e.g., evidence of queen replacement or failure; RR = 3.1). We also found that several risk factors—including the incidence of a poor brood pattern, chalkbood (CB), deformed wing virus (DWV), sacbrood virus (SBV), and exceeding the threshold of 5 Varroa mites per 100 bees—were differentially expressed in different beekeeping operations. Further, we found that a diagnosis of several factors were significantly more or less likely to be associated with a simultaneous diagnosis of another risk factor. These finding support the growing consensus that the causes of colony mortality are multiple and interrelated.

"IDIOPATHIC " - 'Disease of Un known Origin'

"IDIOPATHIC BROOD DISEASE" = Brood dies and we don't know why.

This appears to be a great way to spend a lot of money on a lot of research and waste precious time while we really should get the neonics banned!

[T Beek]

Well, I suppose we all do the best we can in the end.  How many times have the rest of you beeks contacted the Industry or your elected Reps?  

Personally I've written dozens of letters, made hundreds of phone calls, even testified before a Congressional Committee, all to no avail.  How about YOU?!

I'll ask you AGAIN Stromnessbees.  What should we do that's not being done?

Some might be interested to know that the EPA is having a webinar on Corn Planting dust and pollinators TODAY @ 8AM eastern conducted over adobe connect at  https://epa.connectsolutions.com/crosspollinate/

Hear you there??????????

[Stromnessbees]

For a start, we need to make more beekeepers aware of the symptoms of neonic posoning, and that CCD is caused by them.

Any red herring stories like the one above need to be exposed as quickly as possible for what they are.

[T Beek]

My primary issue with blaming everything on neonic pesticides is that it excuses BAD BEEKEEPING PRACTICES.

[edward]

For a start, we need to make more beekeepers aware of the symptoms of neonic posoning, and that CCD is caused by them.Any red herring stories like the one above need to be exposed as quickly as possible for what they are.

It just as bad , or even worse thinking that there is only ONE factor effecting the bees!

We would do ourselves and the bees a great disservice if we dropped all other lines of inquiry and only look at neonic posoning!

There are more than one problem facing our friends, not just the flavor of the medial month.

Beating people over the head and demanding they do something often has the opposite effect, try motivating people in an informative way and you might get more interest.

mvh edward  :-P

Fanatics are boring and they suck, and they preach to themselves  :angel:

[T Beek]

Thank you edward, for presenting a more balanced and common sense approach. 

All this tit for tat 'between beeks' serves little beyond the best interests of powerful forces more interested in today's profits and their apparent delusional hatred of the natural world other than those profits.