Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76FEBRUARY 2017 SEEDWORLD.COM / 19 TIP difficult for commercial beekeepers to provide the assurances to customers that they need. “Beekeepers in general face chal- lenges associated with disease and nutri- tion, and overall bee health,” says Marty Wiglesworth, a Syngenta agronomy ser- vices manager for the South & East Coast Commercial Unit. “Mite and disease issues can be especially challenging. “There are remedies, but they [mites and disease] are always threats to the strength of a hive,” he says. When hiring a pollinator service, Wiglesworth says growers expect two things: Hives that are healthy and prolific and, as a result, more consistent fruit set for the crop where the hives are placed. Williams explains that researchers continue to work on the impacts of the Varroa-virus complex — the primary disease threat — and on improving forage resources for bees in agricultural lands throughout the season. One team of researchers is Kirk Anderson and Vincent Ricigliano at the Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson, Ariz. They report making signifi- cant progress in the development of a Varroa mite biocontrol strategy. Research Shows Promise “During the last 10 months, we have suc- cessfully developed methodologies for isolation, genetic characterization and toxicity assays (in vitro and host-assisted) of candidate Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) strains,” Anderson says. He shares that they used two sources of commercial migratory colonies for their sampling of Varroa mite populations. “Multi-gene analysis of the cultured Bt enabled the identification of novel isolates and ensured genetic diversity and variable toxicity of our Bt strain bank,” he says. “Using in vitro bioassays, we con- tinue to identify an increasing number of Bt strains exhibiting acaricidal potential. Strains with strong in vitro effects will be field tested for toxicity to both bees and mites at the colony level over the coming months and fall of 2017. “We are presently assessing efficacy in cage experiments that include host- associated components.” Anderson says these finding demon- strate that the control strategy shows a significant increase in the percent survival. However, he says, conclusive colony-level testing will require another yearly cycle of Varroa, allowing time to adequately design and quantify the criti- cal fall treatment. An additional stress to commercial hives is that they are moved around the United States. “With hives coming out of winter dormancy and being moved around the country, that keeps stress on the bees,” Wiglesworth says. Finally, growers are very good at adhering to crop protection labels, but there are instances where pesticide labels have not been adhered to and this puts additional stresses on the beekeeper. With the recent Environmental Protection Agency guidelines on certain pesticide classes, additional safeguards are put in place to keep bee health top of mind, Wiglesworth says. As of Jan. 12, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published its prelimi- nary pollinator-only risk assessments for neonicotinoid insecticides clothianidin, thiamethoxam and dinotefuran and also an update to its preliminary risk assess- ment for imidacloprid. The assessments for clothianidin, thiamethoxam, and dinotefuran, similar to the preliminary pollinator assessment for imidacloprid showed: most approved uses do not pose significant risks to bee colonies. However, spray applications to a few crops, such as cucumbers, berries, and cotton, may pose risks to bees that come in direct contact with residue. In its preliminary pollinator-only anal- ysis for clothianidin and thiamethoxam, the EPA has proposed a new method for accounting for pesticide exposure that may occur through pollen and nectar. While efforts such as these are good and can only help bee colonies thrive, additional work is needed in more areas. Williams says the work on the value of non-Apis bees for pollination contin- ues and offers great potential in some instances. “To enhance these bees and pro- vide forage for Apis (honeybee), there is research on the value of flowering seed mixes and other plants to provide forage and habitat,” he says. “Research on honeybee nutrition suggests that improved forage can increase annual colony survival, and additional work on these forage plantings indicates that it supports wild bee diversity and can increase pollination and yield of neigh- boring crops.” But he says more research is needed to understand real population impact on wild bees. “How do they improve repro- duction and survival, not just visitation, of bees?” he asks. “This is key to under- standing long-term impacts.” There is no shortage of questions when it comes to pollinators and how best to protect them. Simply put, Williams says more data is needed. SW It’simperativethatasanindustrywetakeaproactiveapproachinprotecting pollinators.operationpollinator.com “There are remedies, but they [mites and disease] are always threats to the strength of a hive.” — Marty Wiglesworth