Honey bee survival rate better in west of Scotland

Researchers believe the higher death rate of bees in the east may be due to pesticides. 

By HILARY DUNCANSON
Published on Monday 25 February 2013 00:02

A “striking” difference in honey bee survival rates between the east and west of Scotland has been recorded by scientists, prompting calls for greater action to tackle the decline of the species.

A team at the University of Dundee studied more than 600 colonies across the country in 2011-12.

Of 274 colonies examined in the east of the country, 58, or 21 per cent, failed.

By contrast, just 14 of 286 colonies failed in the west – a smaller decline of about 5 per cent.

Scientists believe the presence of intensive agriculture and large areas of oilseed rape in the east could be linked to the poorer results for the area.

But they criticised the way data on pesticide use is, or rather is not, gathered, saying the current system makes it impossible to properly determine what is causing honey bees to die.

Lead researcher Dr Christopher Connolly, of the university’s division of neuroscience, said: “What we do have in the east and not the west is intensive agriculture.

Picture: Greg Macvean

“It could be that the lack of natural habitat is the cause. It may be that bees and other pollinators may not be getting such a balanced diet.

“In the west, it’s largely wild crops that they are feeding on, such as trees, heather and gorse.

“It could be that the intensive agriculture and intensive levels of pesticides are contributing to the failure of the bees.

However, even within the east, there were marked differences in death rates. Colony losses in parts of Fife were as high as 30 per cent and the Tweed Valley figure stood at 19 per cent. Edinburgh recorded losses of less than 6 per cent last year.

A further study led by Dr Connolly analysed colony failures over winter across the country. Of 89 colonies that had fed on oilseed rape, 27 failed, a death rate of 30 per cent. By contrast, 13 out of 82 colonies which had not fed on oilseed rape died – a smaller failure rate of 16 per cent.

Dr Connolly believes nicotine-based pesticides, neonicotinoids, may be contributing to the deaths of bees feeding on the crop, which is more commonly grown in the east.

Continued: http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/honey-bee-survival-rate-better-in-west-of-scotland-1-2807966

Volunteers sought for ferret spotlighting effort

Once considered the most endangered mammal on the planet, the black-footed ferret continues its climb toward recovery in Arizona's Aubrey Valley. As part of this recovery effort, the Arizona Game and Fish Department is seeking volunteers to assist with two spring spotlighting events to document the population of this elusive, nocturnal, and endangered carnivore. Witness the process of how researchers learn about to understand the black-footed ferret's population, longevity, and movement throughout the range.

The Black-footed Ferret Recovery Project personnel will be conducting two shorter spotlighting efforts instead of five consecutive nights, as in the past. The spotlighting periods will be from March 28-30 and from April 25-27 at the black-footed ferret recovery area in Aubrey Valley, just west of Seligman. Sign up for just one evening or several. Volunteers must be able to stay attentive from sunset to sunrise and be willing to learn how to use a Global Positioning System (GPS). A parent or guardian must accompany volunteers under the age of 18.

Twice thought to be extinct, a small population of black-footed ferrets was discovered in 1981. Only 18 were left when captive breeding efforts began in 1985. In 1996, Arizona's Aubrey Valley was selected as a reintroduction site, where the population has become large enough over the past decade to be self-sustaining. All the ferrets in the wild today are the offspring of just seven males and 11 females. A record 123 individual ferrets were documented in 2012, confirming that the reintroduction of these specialist carnivores in Arizona has been a tremendous success. The program is funded through the state's Heritage Fund and federal match dollars. Volunteers are vital to the continued success of the program because the department does not have the personnel to fully staff these events.

For more information about volunteering, email azferret@azgfd.gov by March 22 for the first spotlighting effort, and by April 19 for the second. On the subject line of the email, write "Spring Spotlighting" with "March," "April," or "Both." Indicate which night(s) the volunteer is available, first and last name, contact number, and whether they will be accompanied by anyone else. Please note whether the volunteer can bring GPS, clipboard, headlamp, pen, binoculars, walkie-talkies, 4x4 vehicle (include passenger capacity), compass, and a spotlight that is rechargeable or can be plugged into the vehicle's cigarette lighter. Temperatures will be cool, so dress appropriately.

http://www.azgfd.gov/

Wasp Transcriptome Creates a Buzz

Feb. 22, 2013 — New research delivers a sting in the tail for queen wasps. Scientists have sequenced the active parts of the genome -- or transcriptome -- of primitively eusocial wasps to identify the part of the genome that makes you a queen or a worker. Their work, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Biology, shows that workers have a more active transcriptome than queens. This suggests that in these simple societies, workers may be the 'jack-of-all-trades' in the colony -- transcriptionally speaking -- leaving the queen with a somewhat restricted repertoire.

Studying primitively eusocial species -- like these wasps -- can tell us about how sociality evolves. Seirian Sumner and colleagues sequenced transcriptomes from the eusocial tropical paper wasps -- Polistes canadensis. All social species ultimately evolved from a solitary ancestor -- in this case a solitary wasp, who lays the eggs and feeds the brood. But how does this ancestral solitary phenotype split to produce specialised reproducers (queens) and brood carers (workers) when a species becomes social?

This paper gives a first insight into the secret lives of social insects. It shows that workers retain a highly active transcriptome, possibly expressing many of the ancestral genes that are required for our solitary wasp to be successful on her own. Conversely, queens appear to shut down a lot of their genes, presumably in order to be really good reproducers.

 More:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225201823.htm

It’s not a bird or plane, it’s a flying squirrel

A bird or plane wouldn’t be as exciting, or as cute, as these two Siberian flying squirrels.

The wide eyed tree dwellers showed off their impressive ability to glide and hide in trees in front of intrigued snappers.

The pictures, which also show the squirrels in cute poses on the bark, were captured by photographer Masatsugu Ohashi on the Japanese island of Hokkaido.

A bird or plane wouldn’t be as exciting, or as cute, as these two Siberian flying squirrels.

The wide eyed tree dwellers showed off their impressive ability to glide and hide in trees in front of intrigued snappers.

The pictures, which also show the squirrels in cute poses on the bark, were captured by photographer Masatsugu Ohashi on the Japanese island of Hokkaido.

 ‘The squirrels make this tree a nest every year when it is winter. Five of them live communally in the cold season,’ Mr Ohashi said.

‘It is early morning and in the evening they become active.

‘They are almost always in the nest so chances of photographing them in the daytime are difficult.’

The animals, also known as Russian flying squirrels, can escape predators by stretching out their limbs and gliding between trees.

They are normally quite shy and can sleep for days on end so getting these shots of the animals in action was rare.

http://metro.co.uk/2013/02/18/its-not-a-bird-or-plane-its-a-flying-squirrel-3499754/

Palestinian fisherman mystified after bloodied Mobula Ray fish wash up on Gaza beach

Palestinian fishermen on Wednesday dragged hundreds of endangered rays out of the waters off the Gaza Strip, sparking an absurd international media sensation over where the fish came from.

Palestinian media reported that the cartilaginous fish had made a comeback in the waters off the Palestinian territory after years of absence, and that local fishermen had begun hauling them to the markets. A kilo of fresh ray sold for NIS 10 (less than $3) in the Gaza City fish market, the Ma’an news agency reported.

“For the first time in five years, fishermen say they are catching the rays by the hundreds,” Ma’an wrote.

Videos published on YouTube showed Gazan fishermen lugging the massive fish out of boats offshore, and butchering them on the beach with machetes before carting them off. The fishermen can be clearly seen in the video offloading the fish and lining them up in neat rows on the sand.

Once images of rows of dead rays lined up on the Gaza beach were photographed by the press, however, the story began to metamorphose — from a large and interesting catch at sea, to a purported mass death mystery.

Like sharks on the kill, the UK’s Daily Mail online picked up the story shortly after it was published, but rewrote it as the “Mystery of the massacred manta rays.”

Italy’s La Repubblica ran an AFP photo taken Wednesday morning of the rays lined up on the beach and also called it a mystery. “It is difficult to determine the cause, but the scenario that occurred on the beach was really disconcerting,” it wrote.

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