Colony collapse disorder and broader honey bee decline raise questions about welfare at colony level and have cascading consequences for agricultural pollination and wild plant reproduction.
Colony collapse disorder and broader honey bee decline raise welfare questions at both colony and individual bee level. Dying colonies involve massive individual bee death from mite-transmitted viruses, pesticide toxicity and starvation. The scale of individual bee mortality in CCD events is vast. The ecological consequences for wild plants and the animals that depend on them add further welfare implications beyond the bees themselves. Varroa management is the most evidence-backed intervention for preventing colony welfare decline, and beekeepers who neglect mite monitoring are responsible for preventable colony suffering. The broader pollinator crisis requires landscape-level responses including pesticide reform and habitat restoration that go beyond individual apiary management.