Ernie Fitzpatrick our expert of the day, writes:

Beekeepers across America are encountering a strange phenomenon! And so did I last year. My tomato plants didn’t have enough BEES! Bees are abandoning their hives. Millions of these insects have been reported lost, with no trace of where the colonies may have gone, and no apparent cause for their disappearance. In a few other cases, whole colonies have been found dead in their hives. Is this a run up to the infamous 2012, like in December 21, 2012? Or simply Colony Collapse Disorder?

Scientists and beekeepers alike are unsure as to the source of this problem, which is tentatively being called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Suspected causes include pesticides, mites, viruses, cold weather, fungus, the use of antibiotics and low-quality food for the bees. And all are guesses!

There are signs that the immune systems of infected bees are collapsing, again for no known reason, causing some to call it “bee HIV/AIDS.” Can you believe this stuff? With weakened immune systems, the bees are unable to fight off diseases. In fact, found in the stomachs of infected bees are traces of nearly every disease that has affected bees over the last 100 years.