MOSCOW, July 21. /TASS/. A mass die-off of bees has been reported in the Russian Urals region of Chelyabinsk, with the causes under investigation, according to the local veterinary service.
Millions of bees have also reportedly died in Siberia's Krasnoyarsk Region districts, with no infectious or parasitic diseases detected in them, the regional veterinary service said.
TASS has compiled a summary of what is currently known.
Chelyabinsk Region
- More than five million bees died in a district of the Chelyabinsk Region, while the causes are still unknown, an official at local veterinary service told TASS.
- The official did not specify how many farmers filed complaints or how many bees died in total.
- The veterinary service took samples of the soil, which are now undergoing lab tests.
- Measures will be taken if the laboratory tests show the presence of residual pesticides, the official said.
Krasnoyarsk Region
- Millions of bees have died in the Krasnoyarsk Region, as the local prosecutor's office has launched a probe there too, an official of the supervisory agency said.
- Earlier, the media reported that about 30 million bees died in one of the region's districts because of the use of potent pesticides in neighboring fields.
- The veterinary service has seized the bees, and an examination was ordered.
- The results of the inspection will determine the cause of the bees' deaths.
- The local government will decide on response measures after the inspection ends.
- The supervisory authority did not specify the number of dead bees to TASS, but said that 22 farmers had contacted the regional veterinary service to report bee deaths.
- Soil and plant samples were collected for examination in the district where the bees died, according to Yulia Alkova, Deputy Head of the State Land Supervision Department at the regional office of the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance.
- According to her, the department received complaints from local beekeepers about bees dying off due to the use of chemicals of classes 1 and 3 in the fields in early July.
- No infectious or parasitic diseases were detected in the bees, according to the regional veterinary service.
Possible consequences
- Crop yields in the areas not pollinated by bees may decrease by 10-15%, according to Ruslan Sharafutdinov, Director of the Institute of Ecology and Geography at Siberian Federal University, told TASS.
- Sharafutdinov also said that bees pollinate not only agricultural crops, but also 90% of wild flowering plants. Their disappearance could reduce the biodiversity of meadows, forests, and other natural communities.