What is colony collapse disorder, Biology

Assignment Help:

Q. What is Colony Collapse Disorder?

Bee colonies are attacked by a variety of pathogens and parasites.

One major pathogen is the acute bee paralysis virus (IAPV), which causes a breakdown of the ribosomes in infected bees. The infected bees become paralysed and die when outside the hive.

Two major parasites are:

• the varroa mite (Varroa destructor), which feeds on the blood of bees, wounding the bee and weakening its immune system. Varroa mites are also vectors for viruses such as IAPV.

• the fungus (Nosema ceramae), which infects the intestinal tract of bees, reducing the bee's ability to process food, and makes the bee susceptible to infection and chemical attack.

During the colder winter months in the USA, on average about 15 - 25% of bee colonies die. However, in late 2006 American beekeepers began reporting much higher losses of colonies (up to 90% in extreme cases), and in the four years since then, more than a third of bee colonies (approximately three million) have failed to survive the winter in the USA. Similar losses have been reported in Canada and Europe, resulting in the loss of billions of honey bees.

This phenomenon has been termed Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) and to date no cause has been identified. The main symptoms of CCD are a bee hive that has a live queen in residence with very few or no adult bees; no dead bees are present in the hive. Honey is often present in the hive along with immature bees. As there are no workers to care for these young bees, the colony soon dies.Scientists are investigating the possible causes of CCD; it is unlikely that it is caused by a single factor.


Related Discussions:- What is colony collapse disorder

How are fishes characterized, Q. Fish identity card. How are fishes charact...

Q. Fish identity card. How are fishes characterized according to examples of representing beings, skin, basic morphology, circulation, nitrogen waste, respiration, thermal control

Care of psychoemotional aspects of patient in icu, Care of Psychoemotional ...

Care of Psychoemotional Aspects ICU area is an area which is cut off from outside world. Modem ICUs are built in such a way that the sensory deprivation is reduced. Ta

What are the general necessities for surgery, General necessities for surge...

General necessities for surgery The actual surgical technique of dental implant placement, it would be appropriate to recapitulate the basic principles of surgery. The two prin

Define calcium - the macronutrient, Define Calcium - The Macronutrient? ...

Define Calcium - The Macronutrient? Calcium is an important mineral found mainly in bone and teeth. It is widely distributed in food substances such as milk, cheese, egg yolk,

The fragility of erythrocytes, The fragility of erythrocytes The fragil...

The fragility of erythrocytes The fragility of erythrocytes is impaired in the absence of NADPH generation due to the deficiency of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase thereby ca

What are the degenerative diseases of the nervous system, Q. What are the m...

Q. What are the main degenerative diseases of the nervous system? The major degenerative diseases of the nervous system are Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. The

Show the artificial keys, Q. Show the Artificial Keys? These are based ...

Q. Show the Artificial Keys? These are based on the resemblances and differences of some prominent characters in the taxa. These are based on the phylogenetic relationship b

Hydrarch - ecology, Hydrarch - Ecology Its various stages are well stu...

Hydrarch - Ecology Its various stages are well studied in ecosystem like ponds, pools and lakes. Since pond is a fresh water ecosystem, the succession in it is also referred t

Culture negative endocarditis, In patients who have not received prior anti...

In patients who have not received prior antibiotics and who will ultimately have blood culture positive endocarditis, it is likely that 95 - 100 per cent of all cultures obtained w

Explain the effect of deficiency of vitamin e, Explain the Effect of Defici...

Explain the Effect of Deficiency of Vitamin E? Fortunately, vitamin E deficiency in human is extremely rare. This may probably be due to its wide occurrence. in natural foods a

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd