Some beekeepers have suggested honeydew as the problem in the current  
outbreak of disappearing disease.
 
Maybe the list can help out here -- to the best of our knowledge, honeydew  
may be a poor nutrient, but isn't toxic.   There's a complex set of  issues, 
including microbes in the gut, that all interplay and  may eventually kill bees.
 
But, at least in CA, the bees collapse rather slowly, over the winter,  when 
they are living on a high enough percentage of honeydew in their stored  food.
 
We've now documented the bee loss problem in 10 states, many of which DO  NOT 
have a fall honeydew flow.  Some areas of CA apparently do get a late  season 
honeydew.
 
Based on the reports that we have, the yards that we visited, the colony  
collapse is rapid - 2 to 3 weeks or less.  And, we've got some clues that  
suggest that the current problem can be passed to other colonies, yards --   nearby 
colonies may show the problem, while bees far away also show  it (when 
affected colonies are brought in and placed near local  colonies - all of the 
colonies collapse).
 
So, unless someone has convincing evidence that this is due to honeydew,  
we're still looking for the cause.  Please don't decide NOT to fill out our  
survey, because you think you know the answer.  You may be right -- and  we'd be 
glad to find out, but you may be wrong, and lack of participation will  no help 
us sort this out.
 
Jerry


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