Dick Allen wrote:-
Yesterday one of my coworkers mentioned he'd heard on Paul Harvey's radio
> commentary about the Kashmir virus killing bees in B.C., Canada.
>
> Last night I came across this:
> http://www.beekeeping.co.nz/displayarticle1585.html
>
> Does anyone have more information to offer than what appeared in the B.C.
> newspaper article?

I followed the link and was fascinated by the story about problems with
Kashmir Bee Virus now being experienced in B.C.
After the recent thread on "Silent Spring in Europe", I did some background
reading on Imidacloprid which is easily accessed on the www. On reading the
KBV story, I was immediately reminded of a statement made by Stan Sandler in
a submission he made  to The Pesticide Advisory Committee in Canada. I
quote:-


"Bayer claims in many of its publications that the problems with bees are
due to disease, not this insecticide. But I would draw your attention to
this quote, from the label of Premise 75, a Bayer product with 75%
imidacloprid and 25% inert used to kill termites and ants (other social
insects like bees): "Premise causes a range of effects in termites, they
stop feeding and are unable to maintain their colony. A second effect,
exclusive to Premise, is called Premise plus Nature. This product makes
termites susceptible to infection by naturally occurring organisms. Either
way, the termites die and your home is protected". Exactly, my point, weaken
the colony of bees with lethal and sublethal effects and surely disease will
set in, and it is crass to use this effect to advertise a product, and then
use it to blame beekeepers' problems on diseases."

There have been too many reports of "unexplained bee deaths" and unusual bee
disease responses by beekeepers around the world in recent years. Something
strange is going on, and its global. Coincidentally so is Imidacloprid!

Peter Detchon
(in Western Australia, where coincidentally there has also been inadequately
explained bee deaths, poor honey crops and extensive use of Imidacloprid.)

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