“BSI – The Case of the Disappearing Bees” at the Wagner (3/28, 1PM)

Posted on | March 12, 2009 | Comments Off

Where have the bees gone? Melissa Majoria, of course. The bees are cleverer than you may think.

Well, maybe for Doctor Who fans, but if you want to know more about why we may have lost almost one third of our honey bees, and what their fate may mean to us, I suggest that you hear what Dr. May R. Berenbaum has to say at the Wagner Free Institute of Science on Saturday the 28th. She’ll be delivering a lecture at the Wagner at 1pm. (Directions)

You can find more info here, or read this from the Wagner’s press release:

WESTBROOK LECTURE 2009:
“BSI – THE CASE OF THE DISAPPEARING BEES”
Presented by Dr. May R. Berenbaum, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Since December 2006, the mysterious disappearance of one-third of America’s honeybees has been known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Different from the major parasite-related decline in bee populations during the 1980s, CCD causes bees to simply disappear. Apiarists don’t find dead bodies, so pinpointing a cause is even more complex. On Saturday, March 28th, the Wagner Free Institute of Science will host entomologist Dr. May R. Berenbaum, Professor and Head of the Department of Entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and one of the scientists working to find out the cause of the bee crisis.

Dr. Berenbaum’s research focuses on insect chemical ecology and for over three decades she has studied the ways in which naturally occurring and synthetic chemicals affect the distribution and abundance of plant-feeding insects. Frequently named an excellent teacher, she is devoted to teaching and fostering scientific literacy and has authored numerous magazine articles as well as four books about insects for the general public. She has also gained fame for organizing the Insect Fear Festival at the University of Illinois, an annual celebration of Hollywood’s entomological exaggerations.

In a 2007 interview with Smithsonian Magazine, Dr. Berenbaum revealed just how varied the theories regarding the cause of CCD are, “name something and it’s been suspected…cell phone transmission, jet contrails, wireless internet, and new pesticides” are just a few. Dr. Berenbaum’s lecture will discuss the more plausible causes scientists have discovered. One theory that may not be widely accepted, but Dr. Berenbaum has discussed publicly is, “that visitors from another planet have decided they were going to abduct the smartest organisms on the planet, and they’ve picked the honey bee.”

Dr. Berenbaum’s upcoming lecture at the Wagner Institute will help the general public and the scientific community further understand the pollinator crisis itself, the plight of the honey bee, and the current advances in entomology that provide hope for the future of America’s bees.

Everybody waggle like your hive depended on it!

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