Evolution
Bees
infected with parasites have displayed behaviour has led to comparisons
with Zombies. But could the so called ‘Zombees’ help the fight against
population decline.
The infection occurs when the scuttle fly
lays eggs inside the bees. When the eggs develop into larvae it affects
the bees behaviour forcing them to abandon their hives at night. They
group together by outdoor lights and walk acros
s the ground in increasingly erratic circles before dying.
The entomologist who discovered the phenomenon, John Hafernik, has
suggested that the parasites could be mind-controlling the bees forcing
them to desert the hive or the bees could be committing altruistic
suicide in a bid to prevent further infection of the hive.
Hafernik and his colleagues have been attaching tiny radio tags to
infected bees which trigger laser tags at the entrance of hives,
registering if the bees do return to the hive and if so how frequently.
If they find the bees to only abandon their hive at night (a time when
healthy bees rarely leave the hive), that would indicate that the
parasites are mind-controlling the bees.
In recent years bee
populations have been devastated by the mysterious disease known as
colony collapse disorder, or CCD. While Hafernik believes it’s unlikely
that the infection of parasitic maggots is the main cause of CCD, it
could help solve the mechanism of abandonment, a common symptom of CCD.
JB
http://
Bees
infected with parasites have displayed behaviour has led to comparisons
with Zombies. But could the so called ‘Zombees’ help the fight against
population decline.
The infection occurs when the scuttle fly lays eggs inside the bees. When the eggs develop into larvae it affects the bees behaviour forcing them to abandon their hives at night. They group together by outdoor lights and walk acros
The infection occurs when the scuttle fly lays eggs inside the bees. When the eggs develop into larvae it affects the bees behaviour forcing them to abandon their hives at night. They group together by outdoor lights and walk acros
s the ground in increasingly erratic circles before dying.
The entomologist who discovered the phenomenon, John Hafernik, has suggested that the parasites could be mind-controlling the bees forcing them to desert the hive or the bees could be committing altruistic suicide in a bid to prevent further infection of the hive.
Hafernik and his colleagues have been attaching tiny radio tags to infected bees which trigger laser tags at the entrance of hives, registering if the bees do return to the hive and if so how frequently. If they find the bees to only abandon their hive at night (a time when healthy bees rarely leave the hive), that would indicate that the parasites are mind-controlling the bees.
In recent years bee populations have been devastated by the mysterious disease known as colony collapse disorder, or CCD. While Hafernik believes it’s unlikely that the infection of parasitic maggots is the main cause of CCD, it could help solve the mechanism of abandonment, a common symptom of CCD. JB
http://
The entomologist who discovered the phenomenon, John Hafernik, has suggested that the parasites could be mind-controlling the bees forcing them to desert the hive or the bees could be committing altruistic suicide in a bid to prevent further infection of the hive.
Hafernik and his colleagues have been attaching tiny radio tags to infected bees which trigger laser tags at the entrance of hives, registering if the bees do return to the hive and if so how frequently. If they find the bees to only abandon their hive at night (a time when healthy bees rarely leave the hive), that would indicate that the parasites are mind-controlling the bees.
In recent years bee populations have been devastated by the mysterious disease known as colony collapse disorder, or CCD. While Hafernik believes it’s unlikely that the infection of parasitic maggots is the main cause of CCD, it could help solve the mechanism of abandonment, a common symptom of CCD. JB
http://
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