Honeybees Have Returned, but Has the Media Noticed?

Since 2007, honey farms all over the country were stricken by the sudden disappearance of their resident honeybees. After much speculation, it was decided that it was due to Colony Collapse Disorder, also known as Vanishing Bee Syndrome. However, scientists were never in complete agreement if this was really the case or if something else entirely was at work.

Never missing a beat, Hollywood jumped on the fear-mongering bandwagon with the production of "The Happening" (read the synopsis at www.imdb.com/title/tt0949731/ at your own risk; it is full of spoilers), which had previews making specific mention of the honeybee disappearance, and we were also greeted with the children's CGI film "Bee Movie" which showed what might happen if honey bees were suddenly absent from their natural task of pollination. Experts all across the country made sure everyone understood how the absence of honeybees would affect agriculture financially.

For about a year the missing honeybees was a hot topic, then suddenly; the media lost interest.

Now, it seems that the honeybees are making a comeback, and the media is largely silent on the phenomenon. Apparently good news just doesn't make the sell in today's modern news broadcast. Fortunately, some beekeepers and other observant nature watchers are communicating the return of the honeybees.

There is still no scientific consensus on why the honeybees disappeared, or where they might have went; did they suffer a massive die-off or did they migrate somewhere for a season? Nor is there any consensus on why they have returned.

Mysterious natural phenomenon such as the disappearance and return of honeybees are things that should be reported on by the media. These are things that affect our lives. In spite of our modern technology and ever-widening gap between us and the natural world, we are still subject to its well being; a symbiosis that we would apparently rather not admit, but one that is inescapable.

It is a sad thing when a random search for current conspiracies uncovers one of the first public discussions regarding the return of honeybees.

It's ok to spread the word of a positive event.

Hopefully the scientific inquiry into the disappearance of honeybees will not end simply because they have returned; it could happen again and next time they might not return for a longer length of time, or not at all. Our natural environment is a fical thing and these days it is somewhat more fragile than it used to be. Any scientific study that can help us prevent new catastrophes should be welcomed.

At least for now, the honeybee disappearance epidemic can be trumped their return. Still, it was a close call.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colony_Collapse_Disorder, wiki entry.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0949731/, Internet Movie Database.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389790/, Internet Movie Database.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/27/business/27bees.html?n=Top/Reference/Times%20Topics/Subjects/A/Agriculture, New York Times.

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread366127/pg1, Above Top Secret.

http://www.newhouse.com/early-buzz-is-that-honeybees-are-returning-5.html, Newshouse News Service.