In Europe, China and the USA, beekeepers are being regularly confronted with severe inexplicable and sudden colony losses (Euro 400 million per year, excluding pollination value), with colonies exhibiting diverse symptoms (CCD = Colony Collapse Disorder). This major pollinator decline may lead to even more serious economic and ecological consequences than already experienced (severe pollination deficits in major crops) because beekeepers and veterinary authorities are unaware of the underlying factors and cannot implement effective mitigating measures. Efforts by individual countries to reveal the drivers of colony losses are doomed due to the high number of interacting factors. An international COST network is urgently required. COLOSS will identify the factors at the individual honeybee and colony levels causing severe colony losses and investigate synergistic effects between them. This will enable the development and dissemination of emergency measures and sustainable management strategies to prevent large scale losses. For this purpose, leading scientists, beekeepers and industry from COST countries and some non-COST countries, will collaborate with complementary approaches, thereby providing the crucial R&D link for the success of this Action. This worldwide integrated approach will mitigate the detrimental impact of honeybee colony losses for beekeepers, agriculture and natural biodiversity.
Keywords: colony losses, honeybee, environment, pathogens, vitality
