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Study: Roundup Weed Killer Could Be Linked To Widespread Bee Deaths
The controversial herbicide Roundup has been accused of causing cancer in humans and now scientists in Texas argue that the world's most popular weed killer could be partly responsible for killing off bee populations around the world.
A new study [open, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1803880115] [DX] by scientists at the University of Texas at Austin posit that glyphosate — the active ingredient in the herbicide — destroys specialized gut bacteria in bees, leaving them more susceptible to infection and death from harmful bacteria.
Researchers Nancy Moran, Erick Motta and Kasie Raymann suggest their findings are evidence that glyphosate might be contributing to colony collapse disorder, a phenomenon that has been wreaking havoc on honey bees and native bees for more than a decade.
Also at Science Magazine.
Related:
Landmark Study: Honeybee Queens Severely Affected by Neonicotinoid Pesticides
Cancer Hazard vs. Risk - Glyphosate
Glyphosate Linked to Liver Damage
Extensive Study Concludes Neonicotinoid Pesticides Harm Bees
Lithium Chloride May Help in Fixing Bee Colony Collapse Disorder
European Regulator Finds That Neonicotinoid Pesticides Threaten Bees
Monsanto Faces First US Trial Over Roundup Cancer Link
Monsanto Ordered to Pay $289 Million in Glyphosate Cancer Trial
(Score: 5, Funny) by bzipitidoo on Thursday September 27 2018, @12:25AM (2 children)
There's no way I could keep bees. Got family members who are mortally afraid scared of being stung and suffering a fatal allergic reaction. Even without that, I suspect the neighbors in this suburban "paradise" would do all they could to kill the bees and harass me for trying to keep them. I'd probably be reported to the city and told I must destroy the hives or face thousands in fines for violating dozens of city ordinances. At least I don't have to deal with a home owners association, but if there was one, I suspect they'd take a real dim view of anyone who tried to keep bees.
Maybe someday I'll be able to set up and use a clothesline.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:28AM
But that doesn't mean they don't forbid them anyway, rather it means the plaintiff can be confident they'll prevail when they sue their HOA.
My friend the paralegal is completely convinced that it's legal to drive in Oregon without a driver's license. He speaks of this frequently.
"That may be so, but it won't prevent your getting arrested. Rather it means that you'll win on appeal."
It happens that in the city of portland, public parks are required to be equipped with an iron ring:
To tie your horse to.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 2) by dwilson on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:41PM
Get some leafcutter bees, then. Or mason bees.
No queen, no hive. Independent insects, but still 'bees'. They sting, but it's not much worse than a mosquito bite. They bite too, and that's worse than their sting. But they don't sting or bite unless -seriously- provoked. Like, it happened to fly near your torso while your arm was in the air, and you lowered your arm, trapping it against your body with no way out.
Anything short of that, they are live and let live. I've stood in the middle of a swarm so thick I could hardly see daylight, and they didn't even care.
Then I started switching out the full nesting blocks for empty ones, and one was under my hand as it came down. He cared quite a bit. His buddies didn't, though. Cute lil' buggers really.
- D