Spanish scientists may have discovered why honey bee colonies worldwide have been collapsing, with potentially disastrous consequences for food crop pollination. They believe the debilitating and previously unexplained condition, known as colony collapse disorder in the US and honey bee depopulation syndrome (HBDS) in Europe, is caused by infection with a microscopic pathogen Nosema ceranae that may have originated in the Far East.

The condition is characterised by a sudden and mysterious absence of adult bees and a collapse in colony infrastructure. Treating afflicted colonies with the antibiotic fumagillin, however, resulted in complete recovery, sparking hopes that the researchers, led by Mariano Higes of the Bee Pathology Laboratory in Marchamalo, have an answer to a global epidemic that has baffled bee specialists and food scientists alike.