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That news mentions Canada as CCD country.


I just read the report of Canada and they have not noticed CCD disease there.

Rearsons are varroa, weathers, Apis ceranea.

May 2009, Journal of Apiculture research 2010/

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Maarec has not published new information on CCD for long time
http://maarec.psu.edu/ColonyCollapseDisorder.html
 
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They have still had large losses in some parts of Canada though,for one reason and another.


extract from some threads.

Vancouver Island is home to a quarter of all the honeybees in British Columbia, Canada.

I think the losses on Vancouver Island were from Nanaimo south. Norh of that they are still alive for now. As for Vancouver Island with 25% of the bees in BC. That would mean 10-11 000 hives there. Didn't think there were that many. Many are in the hands of small beekeepers. They've historically kept the Island closed to imports to bees from other parts of Canada since tracheal then varroa mites were discovered in Canada. On the other hand they are open to importing bees from New Zealand and Australia. Go figure eh.

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Vancouver Island beekeepers warn of crisis


By Katie Derosa, with files from Tiffany Crawford, Canwest News Service; with files from Vancouver SunMarch 9, 2010



Vancouver Island beekeepers are reeling from the worst commercial honeybee die-off in recent memory, with some estimating almost 90 per cent of colonies have been wiped out in the last few months.

Many blame a harmful parasite called varroa mites that have become immune to some pesticides, and fear the shortage of bees could affect spring pollination.

"The amount of bees that have been lost is just phenomenal," said Sol Nowitz, a veteran commercial beekeeper who breeds bees and produces honey at the Jingle Pot Apiary in Nanaimo. "It's the biggest catastrophe to kill bees on the Island ever."

He estimates there are between 2,000 and 3,000 colonies on the Island, about a quarter of the 12,000 colonies that flourished a few years ago. In 2007, Nowitz had 275 colonies. Now left with 15, he is sold out of honey and can no longer afford to sell bees to other beekeepers.

The last major die-off was in 2007 and 2008, when some breeders lost 55 to 65 per cent of their stock. This year, however, the almost total depletion is a full-blown disaster, Nowitz said.

The mites were first discovered on the Island in 1997 and have wreaked havoc on honeybees since. They infect the bees' immune systems, making them more susceptible to viruses and deformed wings.

But Stan Reist, president of the B.C. Honey Producers Association, said a variety of factors contributed to the deaths -- including a late fall harvest that tires out the bees and the timing of pesticide treatments.

Some fear honey producers will be forced to raise prices or abandon the business altogether.

Reist said the latest crisis could cripple some Island beekeepers.

"We have had three successive years of problems and there are going to be some people who are not going to be able to rebuild," he said.

Meanwhile, in the Fraser Valley, where there are many large commercial apiaries, keepers are reporting that it looks like a stellar year for bees.

If the beekeepers in the Fraser Valley and in the B.C. Interior have been so successful this year, then it gives hope that the problem in the Cowichan Valley is isolated, said provincial apiculturist Paul van Westendorp.

Simon Fraser University bee expert Mark Winston said pesticide use, as well as farming a single type of crop are "bad for bees" because the bee may not be getting enough nutrients from only one kind of nectar or pollen.

"The residue [from pesticides] in bee colonies are showing low levels of hundreds of different compounds. It has become a toxic soup."

Bees thrive in urban areas like Vancouver because of the diversity in plant life, he said, adding that officials should look at ways to create more urban gardens.

"Reduce space for cars and increase opportunities for growing food. And bees will be much happier."

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Vancouver+Island+beekeepers+warn+crisis/2660548/story.html
 
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