| 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.
Photo by Zachary Huang,
Michigan State University |
To meet our goal we plan to:
1. Determine and mitigate causes of bee decline through
research that identifies relevant pathogens and exposes the degree to which
they interact with one another and other environmental stresses.
2. Identify genes that confer honey bee resistance to pests and diseases,
identify pockets of genetic diversity in American honey bee populations,
and channel superior-performing lines to university bee breeding programs
where stocks can be propagated and apiaries serve as demonstrations for
training workshops.
3. Improve management of bumble bee pollinators through research aimed
at identifying factors believed to affect worker pollen foraging and pollination
efficiency.
4. Deliver research knowledge to client groups by developing a technology
transfer program for queen breeders and a literature on Best Management
Practices for beekeepers and queen breeders on an eXtension web-based Community
of Practice.
The short-term expected outcomes include:
1. Beekeeper knowledge of causes and mitigation of CCD significantly
increases.
2. Beekeeper knowledge of advantages of improved stock significantly
increases.
3. Beekeeper awareness of benefits of a stock certification program
significantly increases.
4. Producer knowledge of non-honey bee management significantly increases.
5. User awareness of eXtension website significantly increases.
The medium-term expected outcomes are:
1. Beekeepers in significant numbers adopt Best Management
Practices.
2. Beekeeping profitability improves significantly.
3. Barriers are removed to establishment of a sustainable market for
genetically-improved queens.
4. Barriers are removed to establishment of a stock certification program.
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