Climate Change...of course not.

I ran across a great article today. It was the first time I had heard mention of a grolar bear...the hybrid cross of a grizzly bear and a polar bear. They have done it in zoos, but in the wild? The first one seen in the wild was taken by hunters in 2006. Prior to this confirmation of a grolar bear in the wild, it was thought there were only 17 existing in zoos. This could be a concern on many fronts, but for those that don't think there is climate change going on, and that science doesn't know what it is talking about...no worries. For those of us that believe climate change is real...this is one to think about. A bear larger than a grizzly, without the morality or good taste shown by most griz in not eating humans is a frightening thought. Polar bears are known to hunt and eat humans given the opportunity...in their world, any protein is edible. With an expectation that there will be no summer ice flow in the Artic Sea by 2060, polar bears and grizzly bears will be sharing the same habitat, and the possibility and even probability of more of these grolar bears becomes more real.

About time the grizzly found a way to even up the score. With increasing numbers of grizzlies in the lower 48, there is talk of them being removed from the Endangered Species Act. At least 45 grizzlies have been reported killed so far this year, mostly by hunters in self-defence or government wildlife officials. But wildlife officials estimate the true number is above 60. Two people have been fatally mauled, one in Montana and one in Wyoming.

The US National Marine Mammal Laboratory in Juneau, Alaska, found 34 possible hybridizations between discreet populations or species of large mammals living in or near to the Arctic. Loss of polar ice could become perilous for many of these populations.

In a previous blog, I had mentioned the decline of the honeybee in North America. The theories that have popped up to explain why the North American honey bee population has fallen off have included: electromagnetic radiation, malnutrition, and climate change. Now, these have all been pinpointed. A new article I read shows that the EPA allowed bee-toxic pesticides be used, while subsidizing honey on the agricultural market. Is this really a case of the government comitting genocide on honey bees while paying beekeepers for their honey...or just a "mistake" on the EPAs side?

"Clothianidin has already been banned by Germany, France, Italy, and Slovenia for its toxic effects. So why won't the EPA follow? The answer probably has something to do with the American affinity for corn products. But without honey bees, our entire food supply is in trouble."

Birds: This past week, I have sold several of my late hatches and have eggs in a couple of nests. Pictures will be coming soon.

Honey: Mixing the next batch of Mead...but a little discouraged about more in the future with the EPA's stance.

The cost of Mead

Have you noticed a decrease in the number of honey bees in the last few years?  I have a friend that is a beekeeper...he even has a "watch hive" by his back door, but that's another story. My friend tells me, that there is a worldwide threat to honey bees...they are calling it Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), and they aren't sure what is causing it. Various reasons have been given which include exposure to genetically modified crops, pesticide poisoning, invasive parasites, malnutrition from pollinating vast tracts of crops with little nourishment, and the stress of being moved long distances
A report in Wednesday's edition of the journal PLoS ONE, claims that researchers have found a combination of a virus and a fungus that they believe is responsible for the massive losses of our honey bees.

A decrease in the amount of bees to produce honey, equates to a rise in the cost of honey...affecting the cost of producing mead.
The other catastrophic issue here is pollination, as bees are responsible for a major share of crop pollination in this country, and a good portion of the none-crop flowering plants as well...including century plants, barrel cactus, prickly pear, etc.  Additionally some of them are pollinated by bats, hummingbirds, moths, butterflies and flies.  There are concerns for these other pollinators...that whatever is causing problems with the honey bee population, may next be seen in these other populations.

Some strange efforts have been made to assist in the pollination of our crops, like the Beamer Bee...genetically created...You be the judge, it this real or just a pipe dream.

And how do we bring the cost of mead back down??







Birds: If you don't have the pigeon bug, you will never understand...if you have it, you can never get enough of pigeons.  What new threat is out there for our avian friends, much like CCD for the bees, could be Pigeon Circovirus.

Honey: The majority of this post is dedicated to the loss of honey bees and the pollination of crops and flowers...honey is really just a bi-product, and a tasty one.