The great migratory crossbreeding of honeybees brought the Varroa mite, and experts call for a return to native bee species in nature

(Continued from the previous article) There is also a myth in the beekeeping world that the monk from afar is better at chanting sutras; beekeepers love queens carrying distant genes, believing this guarantees more offspring and higher yields.

More seriously, artificial crossbreeding to raise queens triggered the spread of the Varroa mite (Varroa destructor), a headache for beekeepers worldwide. Taiwan, China is no exception. According to statistics from the Miaoli District Agricultural Research and Extension Station between 2016 and 2017, among reported cases of acute bee poisoning, 90% tested positive for fluvalinate, used to control the Varroa mite, showing that mite infestation is widespread.

The great migratory crossbreeding of honeybees brought the Varroa mite along with it

Among the Western honeybees (Apis mellifera) most widely kept worldwide, there are the Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica) commonly seen in Taiwan, China, as well as the Sicilian bee (Apis mellifera siciliana), the European dark bee (Apis mellifera mellifera) and 31 other subspecies. Because the subspecies can interbreed, queen-rearing experts crossbred subspecies from Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia; offspring multiplied and trade flourished, and these high-yield Western honeybees also began to "colonize" Asia.

In 1960, the first Varroa mite outbreak among Western honeybees was reported in Japan, and it quickly spread to the countries of the former Soviet Union. In the 1970s it spread to Central and South America; Italy reported its first case in 1981, and European countries fell one after another, while the United States, New Zealand and Australia were also unable to escape.

"Western honeybees conquered Asia, then carried it back to Europe, and as a result brought the Varroa mite." Italian entomologist Paolo Fontana explained to an Upstream-Downstream reporter while drawing the transmission route, "Europe originally had no Varroa mite, but it had long existed in Asia, so the Eastern honeybee (Apis cerana) gradually evolved ways to 'coexist' with the uninvited guest, such as frequent swarming and abandoning old nests occupied by the Varroa mite. In addition, the brood development period of Eastern worker bees is relatively short, so Varroa mites parasitic on bee eggs do not have time to grow to maturity; those more severely harmed are the drones, which have a longer brood development period."

Local bee species should be cultivated instead of leaving acaricides in the hive

Because the global beekeeping industry relies heavily on Western honeybees, after the Varroa mite epidemic spread, beekeeping work became complicated and burdensome, and mite control became an essential skill. "The trouble is that chemically synthesized acaricides often remain in the hive." Fontana pointed out that many bee-related products are contaminated, and in fact beekeepers themselves cause it.

Organic mite-control techniques are maturing, such as using oxalic acid together with caging the queen. But Fontana reminded, "In fighting the Varroa mite, what matters is restoring bees' ability to adapt to the environment. Stop shipping tens of thousands of Italian bees to Norway, where they collect a lot of honey in summer but none of them survive the winter. What we need to do is cultivate local bees; for example, Taiwan, China should cultivate local bee species suited to Taiwan, China."

Pesticides are a threat, and large-scale monoculture crops starve bees to death

Bees are weak and disappearing, and pollination of many crops has become a problem. Apples, peaches and cherries in the United States have suffered, and farmers' incomes have fallen along with fruit-set rates. Farmers turned to other pollinating insects for help, such as the solitary blue orchard bee (Osmia lignaria) and the alfalfa leafcutter bee (Megachile rotundata).

To protect harvests, farmers have to rely on bees. "But most treat bees as a production tool, like pesticides and fertilizers, used to boost yields." They care about bees only during the flowering period and forget them once it passes. Fontana continued, "Now some people use drones for pollination, and scientists are also researching varieties suitable for drone pollination." For example, the supermarket chain Walmart, which needs large quantities of fresh fruit and vegetables, has already developed and applied for a patent on pollination drones, as if "man can conquer nature" and bees do not matter.

Some farmers have become bee killers, such as those applying the highly toxic fipronil or neonicotinoid insecticides that make bees lose their minds. Pesticides are indeed a hidden concern, but they are only a symptom; the core disease is large-scale monoculture. For example, to develop bioenergy, Germany and the Nordic countries planted vast fields of rapeseed.

"Rapeseed field, rapeseed field, rapeseed field, rapeseed field, rapeseed field, rapeseed field; the bees fly for most of the day and it is all rapeseed fields." Fontana said, "During the flowering season they do not lack food, but afterward there are no other flowers to forage on. Many times, the bees starve to death. Moreover, with such a large area under cultivation, Europe simply does not have enough bees to pollinate it."

Bees are nature's messengers, and bee survival depends on biodiversity

Following the logic of monoculture, beekeepers move their bees nomadically to follow the flowering seasons of different crops, but Fontana pointed out that this easily spreads diseases and pests, and long-distance nomadism also increases the risk of genetic contamination.

In addition, the importance of "ecotypes" is also ignored. Even among Italian bees, some live in forests at an altitude of 1,500 m, some on plains, and some by the sea; although they are the same species, their habits differ. For example, in the north the flowering period is concentrated in spring and summer, and colony strength is weakest in winter when there are few nectar sources; by contrast, in the south, Sicily is scorching hot and dry in July and August, with not a blade of grass growing and no flowers, so the colonies take the summer to rest and recover.

Because of different geographical environments, Italian bees have different life cycles, and sudden long-distance movement easily causes poor adaptation. Fontana said, "Differences in ecotype are not expressed in the genes, and are also hard to observe from body size; research is difficult, so they are often overlooked."

Let it bee, let bees return to nature

In recent years bees have had a hard time, and beekeepers have not had it easy either. Beyond external factors such as pests and diseases, the threat of pesticides, crop monoculture and climate change, Fontana believes beekeepers should also reflect on themselves. "For example, to sell more honey, they leave none for the bees when harvesting and then feed them only sugar water, but sugar water has none of the nutritional value of honey."

The huge profits squeezed out of docile Western honeybees and Italian bees have supported many beekeepers, but this path has clearly reached a moment for transformation. "Changing habitual thinking is of course not easy. But if you take a longer historical view and broader perspective, you will find that over the long course of history, the civilizations of India and China developed to a high degree, and for a long period their agricultural technology led Europe, yet neither region had a beekeeping industry. China understood sericulture very early, yet had no beekeeping industry." Fontana speculated, "Very likely, the bee species in these two places could not be domesticated; for example, Eastern honeybees easily abscond."

Studying Taiwan, China's native bee species and exploring the way of natural beekeeping

Today, Taiwan, China's bee industry, which keeps large numbers of Western honeybees, is also in a predicament. Fontana suggested that it should not blindly copy Western experience, but should use solid scientific methods to study Taiwan, China's native bee species and explore a different way of beekeeping.

Bees are cute in appearance, and their hardworking image is endearing; in recent years they have suffered repeated disasters, which makes them even more pitiable. Bees have moved from the countryside into cities, driving a "mass bee wave" to save and protect bees. Fontana affirmed that "urban beekeeping" gives urban people some connection to nature; otherwise city children are afraid when they see a bee, or have never seen one at all.

But he offered an analogy: if you like them, you can keep chickens in your yard as pets, but that experience cannot be extended to the industry that treats chickens as economic animals. "The educational significance and production value should not be conflated. Beekeeping is an industry, and it must be reconsidered from an industry perspective."

At root, the problem with the beekeeping industry is that "so-called 'modern' beekeeping technology is also about one hundred and fifty years old, and its flaws are gradually being exposed." Fontana said, "Bees are nature's messengers. The frequent crises in recent years are telling us how important ecological diversity is. Bees live in nature, their genes must maintain biodiversity, and the environment they live in and the food they depend on all require biodiversity."

Even the Western honeybee, pushed around at will, still longs in its bones for mountains, forests and fields, and beekeeping must still return to nature. Let bees be free, Let it be, Let it bee.

Continue reading: