There’s a big buzz among scientists about the winter that just ended: It appears that this year’s cold season was a very bad one for America’s bees.

More bees died this winter than expected, according to a survey by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A study also shows that pollen and beehives across the U.S. are full of pesticides.

Is that something to worry about? Well, yes. Bees may be small creatures but they have a big impact on our lives: They pollinate the plants that provide about one-third of our’ food supply.

Bee health has been a concern since 2006. That’s when American scientists noted a number of beehives usually abuzz with activity were suddenly empty, or almost empty, for no clear reason. Since then, hundreds of thousands of honeybee colonies in the U.S. have gone missing. This decline of bee population is called colony collapse disorder (CCD).

 “Currently, we still have barely enough honey-bee colonies to meet our pollination needs across the country,” says Dr. Eric Mussen, an apiculturist with the University of California, Davis. “If CCD continues to kill colonies, beekeepers will be going out of business. Fruit and vegetable crops will not be pollinated. We will have to import nearly all of our fruits and vegetables and the prices will rise dramatically.”

One-third of bee brokers—people who work with beekeepers to provide bees for food growers—cannot find enough hives to pollinate California's nut trees. Those trees grow most of the world's almonds.

Nobody is sure exactly what is behind the CCD. Chemicals in pesticides could be harming the bees. A disease or a pest may be responsible. Others think the stress of working too hard to pollinate crops for food may also have a role in the bee decline.

Research to understand and solve the problem is ongoing. New research is starting on pesticides used in fields and orchards.

"It's just gotten so much worse in the past four years," said Jeff Pettis, research leader of the Department of Agriculture's Bee Research Laboratory in Beltsville, Md, told the Associated Press. "We're just not keeping bees alive that long."

Lend a Hand to Bees
Want to give a boost to bees? “People can help the bees by planting flowers and garden crops that bees like to visit,” says Dr. Eric Mussen, an apiculturist at the University of California, Davis. A garden should include a include plants that bloom in different seasons. That way, bees will have food all year long.

Here are some links to help get you started.

• Guide to Bee-Friendly Gardens, University of California, Berkeley
• Harry H. Laidlaw, Jr. Honeybee Research Facility, University of California, Davis
• Pollinator Partnership

Words To Know
apiculturist – one who raises bees

pesticides – substances that help plants grow without harm from pests such as insects

pollen – tiny particles found in plants that make new plants grow

pollinate – to move pollen from one plant to another to allow plants, flowers, or fruit to grow

Additional reporting by the Associated Press. Portions of this story originally appeared in Current Health 1.

© 2010 Weekly Reader. Published March 26, 2010.

Photos: AP Images (2).