Managed Pollinator CAP (Coordinated Agricultural Project)
A National Rearch and Extension Initiative to Reverse Pollinator Decline

Awareness of the decline of honey bees and other pollinators took a dramatic upturn after two recent events: the October 2006 release of the National Research Council report “Status of Pollinators in North America” followed by high death rates of bee colonies in the winters of 2006-2008, a phenomenon now called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). All at once, managed pollinators were popularly recognized for what they always were: essential members of American agro-ecosystems.

The problems with managed pollinators cannot be relegated to one or few causative agents. Bee declines are likely a product of negatively interacting factors in pathology, immunology, nutrition, toxicology, genetics, ecosystems management, and bee husbandry.  In response, we have assembled a nationally-coordinated team of experts with proven capacity in extension, genomics, pathology, toxicology, management, pollination, and bee behavior. Our long-term goal is to restore large and diverse populations of managed bee pollinators across the United States to sustain natural and agricultural plant communities.

Dr. Keith S. Delaplane
National Director, Managed Pollinator CAP
University of Georgia
Department of Entomology