You know the song: birds do it, bees do it ... But if things continue, there won't be many bees left to do it. It seems that honey bees are being killed off by tiny mites.

Think about it. When was the last time that you saw a honey bee? It probably was a long time ago. Not many of them are still alive.

Much of the country has already lost 80% or so of its honey bees. Bee keepers are losing many of their bees, and wild bee colonies are not doing well at all. All thanks to mites.

Mites are small animals related to ticks. They are actually not insects, but rather are related to spiders and scorpions.

Many varities of mites, including the kinds of mites that are killing honeybees, are parasites. They suck the blood from their hosts and also eat cell tissues.

The varra mite was discovered in 1904 and first appeared in the U.S. in 1986. These mites live in bee hives and, like vampires, suck the life fluids out of the poor, helpless critters.

The tracheal mite arrived in the U.S. in 1984. These mites hatch inside of a bee, on its windpipe. They consume the bee after they are hatched. Not a nice thing at all to do to a kind host!

A Louisiana lab claims to have one solution - mite resilient bees from Russia. Now in the fifth year of its experimental project, the Russian honeybees do seem to be mite resistant, surviving mite infestation much better than their American counterpart. They better survive cold temperatures as well.

The goal of the Louisiana project is to develop super honeybees. This is another example of genetic engineering at work. And it's a good thing; we all need bees.

This problem has already resulted in lower garden outputs. One third of our food crop requires insect pollination, a task that had reliably been undertaken by honeybees.

Now, they are not around. And this means that there is a pollination deficit.

Commercial bee keepers are also reporting problems. Many bee keepers have left the business after suffering heavy losses. If beekeepers lose their bees, they have nothing at all to sell.

Four federal bee labs are currently in operation. These labs have evaluated bee related issues for years, and represent one place where solutions to this growing problem might be found.

The problem is that the government is threatening to close three of the labs to avoid duplication. Clearly this is a significant issue, and you have to question whether this is a good time to close our bee research facilities. It does not sound like a good time to me. Hopefully, the government will reconsider this bad decision.

Several fixes are in the development stage, in addition to the Russian bee immigration proposal. On solution physically separate bees from mites. Chemical solutions are also being attempted.

For now, support bee research. If you see a honey bee, hug it. Carefully.

The information provided in this column is written by Stuart Lieberman,a practicing environmental attorney, and is for general information purposes only. It is not legal advice and should not be used in place of legal advice.

Stuart Lieberman, Esq., and IRED.Com, Inc., will not accept any responsibilty for any reliance on the information in this column or any damages whatsoever resulting from reading this column.