Introduction
Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is causing a decline in honeybee population in the United States that in turn affects the nation’s economy and ecology. This paper will examine what CCD is, what the possible causes of CCD are, its impact on the nation’s economy and ecology, different treatment options, how this impacts the local area around the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and what the future might hold for bees in the United States.
Colony collapse disorder is a disease that causes worker bees to inexplicably not return to the hive resulting in abandonment and eventual death of the hive (PR Newswire, 2012). In fact, when this disease takes hold of a honeybee hive, there is a distinct lack of bees in and around the hive, dead or alive (Fries, 2014). So far, no single marker has been found that causes CDD, although there has been speculation from climate change and pesticides to parasites (Watanabe, 2009). As a result, CCD has turned into a significant factor behind the decline of honeybees in the United States.
The decline of honeybees from CCD will affect farming practices in the United States. Honeybees are used as pollinators for major crops and are responsible for 15 billion dollars in added crop value (PR …show more content…
These chemical markers being identified to use as CCD markers are based off other similar tests that predict whether a colony will collapse from varroa destructors or DWV (deformed wing virus) (Dainat, Evans, Chen, Gauthier, and Neumann, 2012). This avenue of research will correctly identify CCD and could also potentially pinpoint certain causes of the disease since it must identify certain chemical markers in order to work (Dainat, et. al., 2012). These avenues of research work to understand disease at a molecular level which is beneficial for understanding the mechanisms of disease and how to faster combat
Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is causing a decline in honeybee population in the United States that in turn affects the nation’s economy and ecology. This paper will examine what CCD is, what the possible causes of CCD are, its impact on the nation’s economy and ecology, different treatment options, how this impacts the local area around the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and what the future might hold for bees in the United States.
Colony collapse disorder is a disease that causes worker bees to inexplicably not return to the hive resulting in abandonment and eventual death of the hive (PR Newswire, 2012). In fact, when this disease takes hold of a honeybee hive, there is a distinct lack of bees in and around the hive, dead or alive (Fries, 2014). So far, no single marker has been found that causes CDD, although there has been speculation from climate change and pesticides to parasites (Watanabe, 2009). As a result, CCD has turned into a significant factor behind the decline of honeybees in the United States.
The decline of honeybees from CCD will affect farming practices in the United States. Honeybees are used as pollinators for major crops and are responsible for 15 billion dollars in added crop value (PR …show more content…
These chemical markers being identified to use as CCD markers are based off other similar tests that predict whether a colony will collapse from varroa destructors or DWV (deformed wing virus) (Dainat, Evans, Chen, Gauthier, and Neumann, 2012). This avenue of research will correctly identify CCD and could also potentially pinpoint certain causes of the disease since it must identify certain chemical markers in order to work (Dainat, et. al., 2012). These avenues of research work to understand disease at a molecular level which is beneficial for understanding the mechanisms of disease and how to faster combat