It's hard out there for a honeybee. In the HSI Healthier Talk community forums, a member named Howard writes: "Talk about a health crisis! Lose our honeybees and starvation is not far behind." Howard's posting includes a link to an alarming article about a mysterious phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder (CCD), in which most of the mature bees abandon their hives and disappear. Widespread CCD has been reported in nearly two dozen states in the U.S. Needless to say, this is a major concern for the honey industry. But as Howard noted, the repercussions go well beyond honey. About 75 percent of all flowering plants (which includes most food crops) require pollination. And while birds and other insects help out with pollination, commercial bee colonies play a huge role in pollinating crops. Diana Cox-Foster - a Penn State entomologist - is just one of many U.S. scientists who are closely following the CCD problem. She told the Associated Press that weakened immune systems might be the cause - or one of the causes. Fungi, bacteria, and pesticides could be factors as well. In recent years, parasitic mites have also decimated large populations of commercial and wild bees. The full extent of the problem may soon be revealed when honeybee colonies in northern states receive early spring inspections. | 
