As John pointed out when he covered this earlier, “no honeybees and we don’t eat”. If it is true that cell phones disrupt bee activity, can we change things enough to make a difference? Will the industry allow any change?
They are putting forward the theory that radiation given off by mobile phones and other hi-tech gadgets is a possible answer to one of the more bizarre mysteries ever to happen in the natural world – the abrupt disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops.
Late last week, some bee-keepers claimed that the phenomenon – which started in the US, then spread to continental Europe – was beginning to hit Britain as well.
The theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees’ navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from finding their way back to their hives. Improbable as it may seem, there is now evidence to back this up.
Now a limited study at Landau University has found that bees refuse to return to their hives when mobile phones are placed nearby. Dr Jochen Kuhn, who carried it out, said this could provide a “hint” to a possible cause.
If this turns out to be true we’d better do something about it, as anyone would argue that we kinda need bees. Is there any research on the spread of the bee-colony-death phenomena and how it relates to cell phone coverage and radio signal density?
Given the reality that cell phone penetration is considerably higher in Europe, as well as population density, it seems reasonable to derive that if, indeed, the bees hate cellphones then the phenomenon would be greater in Europe than it is here.
If it really started here and is spreading to Europe, then something other than cellphones is indicated, I should think.
Cellphone? Doubt it.
Bees are but one the 500 “canary in the mine” indicators of our dying planet. Gee, I wonder if burning fossil fuels for 80 years is having an effect. Nah, it’s the cellphone.
A mobile phone anywhere near my brother in law’s boat compass sends it 12 degrees out of whack. But bees don’t use magnetism to navigate, only polarised light. Also, their small size makes them hopeless antennas, even at microwave frequencies. I guess it’s a combination of things that are causing this catastrophe, something happening in Western Europe at the same time as in the USA, something like GM crops. Or 24 hour reality TV. Whatever, it’s a big deal and needs to be taken seriously.
It’s probably caused from “brightly colored cars”. When all of the cars were colored black we didn’t have this problem.
I blame mobile phones for the Bee emigration – im telling you, it’s all the Buzz surrounding the iPhone.
This is just more complete Bull Shezt Science.
I don’t doubt the experimental results they had. I strongly disagree that explains the abrupt disappearance of bees
There would be some validity in the experimental interpretation if the researchers also showed a correlation between the density of bees nesting relative to the position of a cell phone tower, in the wild.
Do Bee Farmers closer to Cell Tower have a higher disappearance rates then Farmers way out in the Boondocks where there is poor coverage?
The Bee die off epidemiology (the facts):
Abrupt disappearance bees
First alarm sounded last autumn
Has now hit half of all American states.
Started in the US, then spread to continental Europe
The experiment (the facts):
A limited study
found that bees refuse to return to their hives when mobile phones are placed nearby.
The market history facts of cell phones (in USA, Europe, Asia, …) it’s spread, number of users, location of towers is not new. There isn’t a sudden increase # of users, # of towers before last autumn.
The facts just don’t add up to implicate cell phones as the cause of Abrupt disappearance bees.
Smartalix you have a certain “flavor” to your choices of topics
5,
If you notice, I ask the same question you do.
I think it is probably global warming. I mean the world is hotter now than it used to be, and most of us humans spend our time inside anyway where its air conditioned.
I think it is probably global warming. I mean the world is hotter now than it used to be, and most of us humans spend our time inside anyway where its air conditioned. If there was a small like .0009 rise in temperature maybe it was just enough to kill the freakin bees. I mean, how do they cool down if they’re hot?? Just because us humans can handle it doesnt mean every species can.
I agree, from what we know now, there is no correlation between cell phone use and bees disappearing, yet. It may not necessarily be commercial cell phone, could be new military/DHS communication systems that have been recently set up. Or it may be some other environmental agent.
First they need to map out where the bees are disappearing, then correlate possible causes.
If it is cell networks, it would be a serious enough problem to shut down cell communications.
The fact that it started somewhere and is spreading elsewhere would lead be to believe it is not cell phones.
We will still eat regardless of the bees diing off, LOL
7,
NOT really…
You must consider that Bee’s pollinate about 60+% of ALL crops…
Bee’s are colony insects, when they CANT go back to the hive, they DIE..
Only the Queen larve can leave.
There is another rumour.
The way we treat our plants… Herbicide, pesticide, forcing growth, and minerals ISNT a good way to add nutrician to our plants.
bees refuse to return to their hives when mobile phones are placed nearby.
Maybe they dislike cellphones as much as I do.
(BUT, I have one…. primarily for emergency communications)
J/P=?
8,
I also believe that bees are dying due to a biological agent we have introduced, be it pesticide, herbicide, fertilizer, or GM manipulation. Factory farming and the accompanying mindset are among the largest factors behind the shabby way we’ve treated the environment lately. However, it doesn’t hurt to check the facts.
It is also very possible that the bees are intolerant of a wide variety of pressures, and if we can mitigate one or more of the irritants we could save the bees. Maybe bees could handle cell phones or pesticide-producing genes inserted into plants, but not both. I don’t know, so let’s look at the data. If we don’t have enough, we should go out and get some.
Not all crops grow from pollination. Mostly fruits,
Like you stated they pollinate 60% that leaves 40% polunation from other factors such as wind.
I’m sure bees will eventually adapt.
I think we need to shut down all cell phones just in case, or at least place a hefty 50% tax on all cell phones and bills, except possibly for those that make use of a newer technology that seems like it won’t hurt bees. We really can’t wait for all the science to work itself out, besides we know that cell phones can’t be doing anything good for the environment, so switching to a newer variety with a smaller footprint is commonsense. Throw in the links to brain cancer, and this is simply the defining issue of our lifetime.
From the article referenced below:
Q: Could cell phone towers explain the mysterious bee death?
A: There is no correlation between CCD and cell phone towers, the CCD Working Group reported that at some areas with no cell phone reception, CCD also occurred.”
http://www.cyberbee.net/ccd.shtml
No one yet knows why this is occurring, but don’t blame it on cell phones. Might as well blame it on UFOs.
10, Smartalix, pesticide, herbicide, fertilizer, or GM manipulation.
All the above have been around for years, even gene manipulation. I doubt these are the cause, either. Maybe, but there is no data yet.. Cripes, we’ll just blame it on global warming.
Other “new” environmental factors that are mobile:
Cars with loud subwoofers bumping the latest Snoop…
Cars with spinners – maybe the spinners disorient the bees?
Cars (you know, the crappy little ones) with their catalytic converters removed so they sound more powerful (and pollute more)…
Perhaps the Flying Spaghetti Monster has given up on humanity.
Let’s see: oh yeah, it’s Bush and Cheney’s fault. Somehow, it must be their fault.
Perhaps it’s the music and movie pirates, they’re certainly bringing about the end of humanity.
Seriously, now — I’m betting it’s some new chemical pesticide or herbicide. Perhaps by-products of ethanol production or something?
I wonder if the die-off is affecting other pollinating bees, such as orchard mason bees? That might provide a clue.
Crops that are normally pollinated by bees do not produce enough pollen to be pollinated by wind. In our yard, the main species pollinated by wind are filberts and cypress trees, and they produce **a lot** of pollen.
Maybe it’s another screwed up good intentioned Government initiative. GM mosquitoes where recently engineered to eventually overtake the current GM mosquitoes population, after nine generations.
Maybe our Government did the same with bees, engineered to overtake the current killer bee population; but, as usual screwed up due to lack of intelligence.
Personally I think it’s an al qaeda operative dressed like Belushi in his bee costume wired rim glasses singing “I’m A King Bee”, luring the bees away like Pied Piper
Is it just me or is there a lot of humankind bashing going on here. Does the remote posability that this might be something totally unrelated to humans. You know it might not be all about us. Hope I did not hurt the self esteem of those of you who think it is all our doing.
There are about 100 million cell phones in Brazil and I haven’t seen or heard anything about bees dying here.
18,
Of course fertilizer and such has been around. But lately as factory farming has spread so has use of these products, often with no concern over how the quantities used (or in the case of GM manipulation, the attributes inculated) will affect the local (or global for that matter) environment.
More likely related to monoagriculture and pesticides over the past 50 years or so – our general Gray Sludge Planet anti-terraforming corporate agriculture project. Here are a couple fairly balanced links:
Sacramento Bee, starts with almond crops (100% pollinated by bees) but ranges out: http://tinyurl.com/2t2kpu – concludes, in part, that we really don’t know yet if something significant IS happening.
And here, from two years ago (before the CCD alarms went out), National Geographic notes honey bee reductions and asks if wild bees can take over pollination tasks: http://tinyurl.com/2sa38p – it quotes a conservation expert: “Prior to the advent of large-scale monoculture agriculture [the practice of growing only one kind of plant in a given plot] in the fifties and the use of lots of chemical pesticides, native bees and feral honeybees pollinated everything. It wasn’t an issue. People didn’t cart bees all over the country.”
Corporate agriculture methods are more efficient? Maybe not. And the honey bee die-back has been going on for awhile now, apparently.
I think it’s very unlikely that the proliferation of cell phones is causing bees to die. There have been literally millions of radio signals around for many years. To mention just a few:
AM radio
FM radio
Television
Military (includes many branches)
Police (many different agencies)
Citizens Band
Walkie Talkies
Government (FBI, ATF, DEA,etc.)
Business two-way
City government
GPS satllites
Direct broadcast satellites (TV and Radio)
Radar (Police, door openers, burglar alarm systems, etc)
Garage door openers
Electronic car entry
Computer networks
Wireless headphones
The list goes on and on. When you stop and think about it, we are constantly bombarded by millions of radio frequencies. Cell phones are just a small part if it.
Cell phones have been around, but use has exploded over the last few years. People really don’t need to use cell phones that much. Mkae it 50c a minute instead of 5, and I think that would reduce usage to emergency situations only, and would bring back the bees. Plus only over the last 5 years have we had GPS signals on phones. We should require phones do less contact with the networks, maybe somehow limiting themselves to when phone calls are being made. People really don’t need cell phones that much, and I think we should pass a ban or hefty tax before it’s too late. Once the damage is done, there’s no turning back. I can’t believe people would be so greedy about wanting to keep their cell phones.
This is a great information. You can get more interesting info that medical physicians around the world are saying about the effects of cell phones and electromagnetic frequencies.For more information http://www.harmonicplanet.com
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It may be wavelength-dependent. For example, they can see UV, and we can’t. Possibly it is the latest generation of phones that is doing this. It is worth investigating if only to be sure it is not a factor. If that is the case this could possibly be fixed by changing the spectrum used.
I still feel it’s not JUST cell phones. We really need to investigate the long term effects of excess electomagnetic radiation on everything. Even very low frequency radiation. How would you like to have your house directly below a 27,000 volt high tension line?? Many folks here in FL do. Your body probably has at least a million radio waves going through it right now.