Honeybees and colony collapse disorder: understanding key drivers and economic implications
January 1, 2025 - Singh, Gagandeep; Rana, Anita
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EmailJournal or Book Title: PROCEEDINGS OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL SCIENCE ACADEMY
DOI:10.1007/s43538-025-00399-x
Abstract: Biodiversity, including the diversity of pollinators such as honeybees, is crucial for ecosystem stability and sustainable development. This review highlights the complex factors contributing to Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), focusing on inadequate bee management practices, pesticide exposure, biotic stressors, nutritional deficiencies, electromagnetic fields, and climate change. These stressors are shown to interact in ways that impair honeybee health and behavior, leading to colony declines. The paper details the biological consequences of CCD, including the absence of adult worker bees, the persistence of the queen, and the lack of dead bees within the hive. The economic impact of declining honeybee populations is significant, with losses affecting crop yields, food prices, and global trade. This decline threatens agriculture, particularly in regions dependent on pollination services. The review emphasizes the interconnectedness of honeybee health with broader ecological and economic systems, calling for urgent conservation measures, improved management practices, and sustainable agricultural strategies to mitigate the negative effects of CCD. Key recommendations for future research focus on the need for regional studies, long-term monitoring, and public education on the importance of honeybee conservation.
Type of Publication: Review; Early Access