Volcano Watch - Taal, Shiveluch, Popocatépetl, Telica, and Pavlof Volcanic eruptions

From just looking at the news over the last two days, a number of these volcanic eruptions seem to be going a bit higher in elevation, compared to the norm. The intensity seems to have picked up somewhat.

Shiveluch Volcano

Volcano in Russia’s Kamchatka Spews Ash Up to 4.3 Miles: 28 June 2013 - " Russia's northernmost active volcano churned out ash to a height of up to 7,000 meters (almost 23,000 feet) in the country's Far East, local Emergencies Ministry’s department reported on Friday."
http://en.ria.ru/russia/20130628/181922753/Volcano-in-Russias-Kamchatka-Spews-Ash-Up-to-43-Miles.html

Telica Volcano

Nicarauga’s Telica volcano shaken by new earthquake swarm: 28 June 2013 - "A new earthquake swarm started this morning, visible on INETER’s seismograms. Telica has six cones, the tallest of which is 1061 meters high. There is a double crater at the top, 700 meters wide and 120 meters deep. Telica has erupted frequently since the Spanish Era. "
http://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/nicaraugas-telica-volcano-shaken-by-new-earthquake-swarm/

Taal volcano nag-alboroto, 15 volcanic quakes, naitala: 28 June 2013 - "Growing unrest is being reported at Taal Volcano in Batangas.  It has been shaken by 15 volcanic earthquakes in the past 24 hours.  Ground deformation is also being reported on one flank of the volcano.”
http://www.philstar.com/probinsiya/2013/06/28/958975/taal-volcano-nag-alboroto-15-volcanic-quakes-naitala

Popocatépetl Volcano

Popocatépetl volcano (Mexico): increasing activity, aerial images of crater: 27 June 2013 - "Seismic activity has picked up, suggesting that the volcano could be headed for more vigorous activity soon. SO2 emissions on NOAA recent satellite data have been relatively high as well. "
http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/view_news/34912/Popocatpetl-volcano-Mexico-increasing-activity-aerial-images-of-crater.html

And the recent article I just posted - Alaska Volcano eruptions get worse: `We can’t explain’ says Geologist: 29 June 2013 - "Alaska volcano eruptions are entering a more powerful phase. After six weeks of Alaska volcano eruptions reaching five miles into the sky, covering nearby communities with ash and shutting down air flights, there looks to be no end."
http://www.transients.info/2013/06/alaska-volcano-eruptions-get-worse-we.html

Bees dying by the millions

Via thepost.on.ca, 19 June 2013 - ELMWOOD - Local beekeepers are finding millions of their bees dead just after corn was planted here in the last few weeks. Dave Schuit, who has a honey operation in Elmwood, lost 600 hives, a total of 37 million bees.

“Once the corn started to get planted our bees died by the millions,” Schuit said. He and many others, including the European Union, are pointing the finger at a class of insecticides known as neonicotinoids, manufactured by Bayer CropScience Inc. used in planting corn and some other crops. The European Union just recently voted to ban these insecticides for two years, beginning December 1, 2013, to be able to study how it relates to the large bee kill they are experiencing there also.

Local grower Nathan Carey from the Neustadt, and National Farmers Union Local 344 member, says he noticed this spring the lack of bees and bumblebees on his farm. He believes that there is a strong connection between the insecticide use and the death of pollinators.

“I feel like we all have something at stake with this issue,” he said. He is organizing a public workshop and panel discussion about this problem at his farm June 22 at 10 a.m. He hopes that all interested parties can get together and talk about the reason bees, the prime pollinators of so any different plant species, are dying.

At the farm of Gary Kenny, south west of Hanover, eight of the 10 hives he kept for a beekeeper out of Kincardine, died this spring just after corn was planted in neighbouring fields.

What seems to be deadly to bees is that the neonicotinoid pesticides are coating corn seed and with the use of new air seeders, are blowing the pesticide dust into the air when planted. The death of millions of pollinators was looked at by American Purdue University. They found that, “Bees exhibited neurotoxic symptoms, analysis of dead bees revealed traces of thiamethoxam/clothianidin in each case. Seed treatments of field crops (primarily corn) are the only major source of these compounds.

Local investigations near Guelph, led to the same conclusion. A Pest Management Regulatory Agency investigation confirmed that corn seeds treated with clothianidin or thiamethoxam “contributed to the majority of the bee mortalities” last spring.

“The air seeders are the problem,” said Ontario Federation of Agriculture director Paul Wettlaufer, who farms near Neustadt. This was after this reporter called John Gillespie, OFA Bruce County president, who told me to call Wettlaufer. Unfortunately, Wettlaufer said it was, “not a local OFA issue,” and that it was an issue for the Grain Farmers of Ontario and representative, Hennry Vanakum should be notified. Vanakum could not be rached for comment.

Yet Guelph University entomologist Peter Kevan, disagreed with the EU ban.

“There’s very little evidence to say that neonicotinoids, in a very general sense, in a broad scale sense, have been a major component in the demise of honeybees or any other pollinators, anywhere in the world,” said Kevan.

But research is showing that honeybee disorders and high colony losses have become a global phenomena. An international team of scientists led by Holland’s Utrecht University concluded that, ”Large scale prophylaxic use in agriculture, their high persistence in soil and water, and their uptake by plants and translocation to flowers, neonicotinoids put pollinator services at risk.” This research and others rsulted in the Eurpean Union ban.

The United Church is also concerned about the death of so many pollinators and has prepared a “Take Action” paper it’s sending out to all its members. The church is basing its action on local research. The Take Action paper states among other things, “Scientific information gathered suggests that the planting of corn seeds treated with neonicotinoids contributed to the majority of the bee mortalities that occurred in corn growing regions of Ontario and Quebec in Spring 2012.”

Meanwhile Schuit is replacing his queen bees every few months now instead of years, as they are dying so frequently. “OMAFRA tells me to have faith. Well, I think it’s criminal what is happening, and it’s hard to have faith if it doesn’t look like they are going to do anything anyway,” Schuit says.

ICE AGE NOW: A Year Without Summer - Mount Hutt Ski Area In New Zealand Closed Due To Too Much Snow And Heavy Snowfall In Northern Kyrgyzstan In Summer!

June 24, 2013 - EARTH -  "Looks like manmade global warming is terrifying in New Zealand," says reader Joshua Cooley.  "Wasn't it supposed to be, later winters, earlier springs, less snow, no snow, higher snow levels, kids won't know snow, etc., etc.?"

Mount Hutt Ski Area In New Zealand Closed Due To Too Much Snow.

Mt Hutt, New Zealand - June 21, 2013.

New Zealand just got hammered with snow (See It's Dumping Down Under!)

At Mt Hutt the storm dropped 40 inches of snow in 20 hours! This led to 15 foot snow drifts and extremely high avalanche danger.

And the snow keeps falling! Another 40 cm is forecast over the next 24 hours. 

Mt Hutt, New Zealand - June 21, 2013.

Mt Hutt, New Zealand - June 21, 2013 - 100cm at the snow stake!.

Mt Hutt, New Zealand - June 21, 2013.

According to the Mt Hutt website, the ski area "is closed again today as further heavy snow falls and low visibility have hampered the progress of snow clearing on the access road. We estimate at least 1.6m of snow has fallen since the storm began and drifts exceeding 3m deep are commonplace in many areas.... All lifts are currently heavily caked in ice." - Ice Age Now.

Heavy Snowfall In Northern Kyrgyzstan In Summer.

Image: Kabar

The snowfall in Naryn oblast on Monday reached in some places 40-50 centimeters. In some areas 3,5 and 15-50 centimeters. The press service of the authorized representative of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic in Naryn oblast reports.

According to preliminary information, because of the snow 438 sheep and one mare with foal perished.

Besides, water level of rivers and canals rose because of snow. 

Image: Kabar

Image: Kabar

Update - As a result of heavy snowfall on June 17-18 in northern Kyrgyzstan 1 thousand 866 sheep, 55 cows and 31 horses died in Naryn and Issyk-Kul oblasts. The press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kyrgyzstan reports.

The snowfall in Naryn oblast on Monday reached in some places 40-50 centimeters. In some areas 3,5 and 15-50 centimeters.

The commission of Civil Protection of regions continues to ascertain the damage of livestock farming and farmland. - Kabar.

EXTREME "APOCALYPTIC" WEATHER: Mother Nature Strikes Italy Hard - Massive Rainfall Causing Flooding On Italian East Coast And Tornado In Italian Coastal Town Of Termoli Brings 150kmph Winds!

June 24, 2013 - ITALY - The following constitutes two reports of  two recent extreme weather events in Italy.

Massive Rainfall Causing Flooding On Italian East Coast.

Exactly as expected in recent days, the Riviera of Romagna and Marche in Italy are the areas most affected by the weather this afternoon: a real "water bomb" is affecting the area on the border between Marche and Emilia Romagna. In Riccione 81mm of rain has already fallen, with 73mm in Rimini and 33mm in Ancona. There are reports of flooding and blackouts, with traffic mayhem. Check out the images below that depict this rather apocalyptic scene. Up to 12cms of rain fell in one hour in some areas. 

Heavy rainfall has caused flooding in the Emilia-Romagna and Marche areas of Eastern Italy.

Streets have been turned into rivers and highways have been closed.

Floods in Rimini and Ancona on the Italian East coast have inundated towns and cities

Tornado In Italian Coastal Town Of Termoli Brings 150kmph Winds.

A violent tornado, as we can see in the photo, made landfall in the early afternoon (just after 3pm) near Termoli on Italy's Adriatic coast, where a storm that had formed inland in the Molise region moved towards the city. The Air Force's own weather station in Termoli measured winds up to 148km/h (92mph). 

Four waterspots form off Italy's Adriatic coast today, June 24th 2013.

Add caption

For about 15 minutes violent rain fell along with heavy hail storms. Homes, shops and the train station of Termoli were flooded. The tornado, which lasted about ten minutes, uprooted trees, ripped roofs off houses and downed billboards. Many sea-side resort buildings experienced serious damage as the tornado swept through the area. Firefighters, police patrols, municipal police and traffic police were all called to the area. 

Not only Italy but also the Croatian and Slovenian coastal areas were affected by severe weather today, Monday 24th June 2013. Violent hailstorms and tornadoes battered a large area of both sides of the Adriatic coast. 


WATCH: Tornado in Termoli - Video 1.

WATCH: Tornado in Termoli - Video 2.

- Meteo Web.

Venus’ winds are mysteriously speeding up

Well, the planets all heated up during this cycle, it wouldn't surprise me that the winds all increase on all the planets as well. The webbot predicts the increase on Earth in relation to the Global Coastal Event language.

Via universitytoday.com, 18 June 2013 - High-altitude winds on neighboring Venus have long been known to be quite speedy, whipping sulfuric-acid-laden clouds around the superheated planet at speeds well over 300 km/h (180 mph). And after over six years collecting data from orbit, ESA’s Venus Express has found that the winds there are steadily getting faster… and scientists really don’t know why.

Over the past six years wind speeds in Venus’ southern atmosphere have been steadily rising (ESA)

By tracking the movements of distinct features in Venus’ cloud tops at an altitude of 70 km (43 miles) over a period of six years — which is 10 of Venus’ years — scientists have been able to monitor patterns in long-term global wind speeds.

What two separate studies have found is a rising trend in high-altitude wind speeds in a broad swath south of Venus’ equator, from around 300 km/h when Venus Express first entered orbit in 2006 to 400 km/h (250 mph) in 2012. That’s nearly double the wind speeds found in a category 4 hurricane here on Earth!

“This is an enormous increase in the already high wind speeds known in the atmosphere. Such a large variation has never before been observed on Venus, and we do not yet understand why this occurred,” said Igor Khatuntsev from the Space Research Institute in Moscow and lead author of a paper to be published in the journal Icarus.

Cloud structures in Venus’ atmosphere, seen by Venus Express’ Ultraviolet, Visible and Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIRTIS) in 2007 (ESA)

A complementary Japanese-led study used a different tracking method to determine cloud motions, which arrived at similar results… as well as found other wind variations at lower altitudes in Venus’ southern hemisphere.

“Our analysis of cloud motions at low latitudes in the southern hemisphere showed that over the six years of study the velocity of the winds changed by up 70 km/h over a time scale of 255 Earth days – slightly longer than a year on Venus,” said Toru Kouyama from Japan’s Information Technology Research Institute. (Their results are to be published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.)

Long-term studies based on tracking the motions of several hundred thousand cloud features, indicated here with arrows and ovals, reveal that the average wind speeds on Venus have increased from roughly 300 km/h to 400 km/h over the first six years of the mission. (Khatuntsev et al.)

Both teams also identified daily wind speed variations on Venus, along with shifting wave patterns that suggest “upwelling motions in the morning at low latitudes and downwelling flow in the afternoon.” (via Cloud level winds from the Venus Express Monitoring Camera imaging, Khatuntsev et al.)

A day on Venus is longer than its year, as the planet takes 243 Earth days to complete a single rotation on its axis. Its atmosphere spins around it much more quickly than its surface rotates — a curious feature known as super-rotation.

“The atmospheric super-rotation of Venus is one of the great unexplained mysteries of the Solar System,” said ESA’s Venus Express Project Scientist Håkan Svedhem. “These results add more mystery to it, as

Venus Express continues to surprise us with its ongoing observations of this dynamic, changing planet.”
Read more here on ESA’s Venus Express page.

Thousands of Germans evacuate as dam on Elbe River breaks

Via abc.net.au, 10 June 2013 - Thousands of people left their homes in eastern Germany on Sunday as a dam burst on the swollen River Elbe and swathes of farmland were flooded in an attempt to spare towns, with meteorologists forecasting more rain.

In Magdeburg, one of the oldest cities in eastern Germany and a regional capital, some 23,000 people were asked to evacuate as water levels in the Elbe rose to a record 7.48 metres, around five metres above normal and surpassing the level reached in devastating floods in 2002.

"We helped yesterday to carry sandbags to secure the town. The mood is very depressed and frightened because many people have to leave their homes," resident Liane Nagen said.

There have been at least a dozen deaths as a result of floods that have hit Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic over the past week.

Officials said more than 8,000 people were evacuated by bus from towns and villages around Aken, south of Magdeburg.

Some took their pets or farm animals with them.

A dam at the confluence of the River Elbe and the River Saale south of Magdeburg burst despite attempts to stabilise it.

A dike was also breached and a crisis unit said the high waters were likely to put further pressure on dikes in coming days.

Surveillance stepped up amid threats to dams

Holger Stahlknecht, interior minister for the state of Saxony-Anhalt, where Magdeburg is located, said air and land surveillance would be stepped up in response to a threat from a previously unheard-of group calling itself the Germanophobic Flood Brigade to attack the sodden dikes.

More than 36,000 people were evacuated across Saxony-Anhalt.

In Brandenburg, a largely rural state that surrounds the capital Berlin, some residents were evacuated and flooding of uninhabited areas was planned.

In Hungary, the Danube was also set to reach record levels in the capital Budapest on Sunday night (local time) and prime minister Viktor Orban said dikes had been strengthened at critical points to protect the city from flooding.

The deluge reached Hungary on Friday but so far authorities, soldiers and thousands of volunteers have managed to defend the villages and towns along the Danube, piling more than 3 million sandbags beside its dikes.

Carmaker Suzuki, one of Hungary's main exporters, said it would will halt production at its plant in Esztergom, north of Budapest, on Monday because of the floods.

The damage from the floods in Germany could amount to more than $8 billion, according to the Cologne Institute for Economic Research.

Political 'rubber boot competition'

Chancellor Angela Merkel, who faces an election in September, has promised $135 million in aid for flooded areas.

"We'll do everything humanly possible when it comes to reconstruction. Germany is sticking together in an admirable way at the moment and it should stay like that," she said.

She has been seen visiting flooded regions and speaking to victims and helpers, unlike her Social Democrat (SPD) challenger Peer Steinbrueck, who told German state television on Sunday he would not get involved in a "rubber boot competition".

"When the worst is over, I'd like to sit down with those affected and discuss in concrete terms what kind of help we can give," he said, adding that he wanted to create an ombudsman to coordinate aid for the victims of flooding.

The pair's response to the flooding could affect their respective chances in the election on September 22.

During the floods of 2002, decisive crisis management by SPD chancellor Gerhard Schroeder gave him a boost in the polls which helped him win a second term.

Along with citizens and emergency services, around 11,000 German soldiers were helping fight the flood waters.

The situation in cities like Dresden and Halle and in the state of Bavaria had improved.

3MIN News June 17 2013 & Large Quake Analysis, Energy from Space and How to watch the Sun

Suspicious0bservers released a special today with his 3/4MIN News update. Here is a quote about the large earthquake analysis. This is a 7 minute video as a result.

Description from Suspicious0bservers in relation to this update - "It is important to know that many factors are involved in building pressure underground, and many others involved in triggering earthquakes. Not all coronal holes produce quakes and not all major upticks in seismicity occur with coronal holes. But the 100,000 plus people here have been watching a statistically significant correlation in upticks of that very seismicity. An uptick has begun again, the coronal holes are set. Not every such situation creates the danger, but it seems the danger prefers these situations. "

If you missed it, here is Suspicious0bservers 'Energy from Space' video which he references during the above mention.

And the 36 minute 'How to Watch the Sun' is below, which is a much see to what Suspicious0bservers has been trying to teach/show everyone through his well researched work.

Major flooding and land slides in New Zealand

A few days ago there was more extreme flooding going on, along with landslides over in New Zealand. This time it was where I am from as well as other locations in New Zealand.

INUNDATED: The hillside home above Sandy Bay that collapsed during a slip on Sunday.

Landslide victim 'great little soul' - This article tells the story of a woman who lost her life as a landslide came down upon her house near Marahau in the Nelson region.

Waters rising in Westbank Rd, Motueka, yesterday.

Tasman Floods: What you need to know - An entry explaining all the areas impacted by the flooding in in the Tasman district of the south island of New Zealand.

IN SHOCK: The hatchery at the Anatoki Salmon Farm has been saved after a large landslide which wiped out the main farm.

Salmon farm devastated - Golden Bay tourist attraction Anatoki Salmon, which is a Salmon farm that I have been to a number of times has been wiped out totally by a landslide.

State Highway 1 near Waikouaiti has been restricted to trucks only.

Worst flooding in close to 40 years - Flooding in North Otago's Waitaki Valley has been described as the worst seen in close to 40 years.

Christchurch - WARRINGTON ST: Rain is still falling across the city causing traffic problems

Flooding closes roads, schools - Canterbury drivers are being urged to stay off the roads, with more rain forecast to fall over the next few hours. The Canterbury Civil Defence emergency management group is urging residents to avoid non-essential travel.

Mass Anti-Government Protests Swell In Brazil

This year is certainly turning out to be a popular time for an uprising, no matter what the topic is concerned.

Via npr.org, 18 June 2013 - What started as small protests about higher bus fares has swelled into nationwide, massive anti-government demonstrations in Brazil.

Last night, reports O Globo, more than 100,000 protesters filled the streets of Rio de Janeiro, while an additional 65,000 hit the streets of São Paulo. Nothing tells the story quite like this video of the streets of Rio posted by Lucio Amorim on Twitter:

Reporting from São Paulo, NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro tells our Newscast unit that people on the streets are demanding that the government pay attention to them.

"The cost of living here is extremely high, there's a massive rate of inflation, and so people say that they are fed up, that they want their government to do something for them," Lourdes said.

One of the big issues is that Brazil has been gearing up for the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. Lourdes says people feel as though the government has been focusing on those big, international events while allowing them to languish.

The New York Times says the protests are the largest and "most resonant since the nation's military dictatorship ended in 1985." What's more, the Times reports, the protests share something in common with the mass protests occurring halfway across the world in Turkey. The newspaper writes:

"The demonstrations in Brazil intensified after a harsh police crackdown last week stunned many citizens. In images shared widely on social media, the police here were seen beating unarmed protesters with batons and dispersing crowds by firing rubber bullets and tear gas into their midst. 

" 'The violence has come from the government,' said Mariana Toledo, 27, a graduate student at the University of São Paulo who was among the protesters on Monday. 'Such violent acts by the police instill fear, and at the same time the need to keep protesting.' "

As CNN reports, the protests have another thing in common with Turkey: They began over something relatively small — a 9 cent increase in the price of a bus ticket. One thing that is different, reports CNN, is that President Dilma Rousseff is encouraging the protests.

"Peaceful demonstrations are legitimate and part of democracy. It is right for the youth to protest," she said in a statement.

PLAGUES & PESTILENCES: WHO Says MERS Virus Death Toll Hits 33 - After 2 Fatalities In Saudi Arabia!

The global death toll from the SARS-like virus MERS has risen to 33, after two new fatalities in Saudi Arabia, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

Spokeswoman Fadela Chaib said the Saudi health ministry had informed the UN agency of three new laboratory-confirmed cases, one of them fatal, and the death of a patient already diagnosed with the disease.

Until last month, the disease was known simply as novel coronavirus, before being renamed Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus. (File photo: Reuters)

“Globally, from September 2012 to date, WHO has been informed of a total of 58 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV, including 33 deaths,” Chaib told reporters.

Until last month, the disease was known simply as novel coronavirus, before being renamed Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, or MERS-CoV, as cases initiated in that region.

There have now been 44 confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia, 28 of them fatal, according to WHO figures.

WHO logs cases by country of infection, rather than of death, and its Saudi toll includes one individual who died in Britain.

One person has died in France after being infected in Dubai, and a patient died in Munich, Germany who was transferred there after first being treated in Abu Dhabi.

There have also been two cases in Jordan, both of them fatal. Qatar has seen two, with those patients treated in Britain and Germany.

Two patients caught the disease in Britain from a person who had been to the Middle East, one of whom died.

Tunisia has seen two non-fatal cases and Italy two -- one of whom caught the virus in Jordan and gave it to a contact in Italy. 

France has recorded one infection, a man who is thought to have caught the disease while sharing a hospital room with the deceased patient who had got it in Dubai.

The virus is a member of the coronavirus family, which includes the pathogen that causes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

SARS sparked global panic in 2003 after it jumped to humans from animals in Asia and killed 800 people.

Like SARS, MERS appears to cause a lung infection, with patients suffering from a temperature, cough and breathing trouble. But it differs in that it also causes rapid kidney failure.

Health officials have expressed concern about the high proportion of deaths relative to cases, warning that MERS could spark a new global crisis if it mutates into a form that spreads more easily. - Al Arabiya.

MASS BEES DIE-OFF: The Global Food Crisis - 34-50% Of ALL HONEYBEE Colonies Died-Off During Past Winter In England, Scotland, United Kingdom; The Worst Losses Since Survey Began?!

June 14, 2013 - UNITED KINGDOM - More than a third of all honeybee colonies in England died over the winter, according to figures from the British Beekeepers Association, the worst losses since its winter survival survey began.

The level of honeybee colony losses across England is more than double what it was last year, up to 33.8% from 16.2% in 2012, the British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) said. Photograph: Lewis Whyld/PA

On average, 33.8 colonies in every 100 perished over the long winter of 2012-13 compared with 16.2% the previous winter. In the south-west of England, more than half of all colonies were wiped out and in the northern part of the country 46.4% didn't survive.

In Scotland and Wales, honeybees fared no better. The Scottish beekeepers association, which has yet to complete its annual survey, predicts losses of up to 50%. And bee farmers in Wales have reported 38% losses.

The BBKA attributed the alarming high bee mortality to the poor weather during 2012 continuing into 2013 and exacerbated by the late arrival of spring.

"The wet summer prevented honey bees from foraging for food, resulting in poorly developed colonies going into winter. When they could get out there was a scarcity of pollen and nectar. Honeybee colonies which are in a poor nutritional state become more vulnerable to disease and other stress factors," said a BBKA spokeswoman.

Many beekeepers also reported incidence of "isolation starvation", when the cluster of bees in the hive becomes too cold to move close enough to eat their food stores in another part of the hive, and so starve.

But there are fears that the death toll for bees in England could be even higher, since the BBKA survey of 846 members closed at the end of March before the arrival of spring.

"April this year was very cold, and the start of May, so bees were confined to the hive for much longer and we still had bees dying from starvation in May. So losses could be much more serious," said Glyn Davies, a beekeeper from Devon and former president of the BBKA.

He said the south-west was particularly badly hit because of the relentless rain. "It was the wet, wet, wet, wet summer followed by an enormously long winter. I've never seen anything like it in the 35 years I've been keeping bees," said the 74-year-old beekeeper.

The winter bee losses come just weeks after EU member states voted for a suspension of three pesticidesalleged to cause serious harm to bees.

Francis Ratnieks, professor of apiculture at University of Sussex, said pesticides weren't the cause of the high bee mortality: "It was the worst summer ever. I had my own bees starving to death in the summer. It is nothing to do with pesticides; bad weather is enough of an explanation. It's not healthy for bees to be trapped in their hives during the summer. Some queen bees couldn't get out to mate and confined bees are more likely to get nosema [a gut parasite] and viruses from the varroa mite."

When the BBKA survey began in 2007-08, winter bee mortality was 30.5%. Since then losses had been steadily falling.

The government's National Bee Unit says its initial 2012-13 findings of around 30% winter bee losses are the highest recorded loss since its bee inspectors began to formally gather their own figures five years ago.

Mike Brown, head of the NBU, commented, "These figures are not surprising given the harsh winter and long cold spring which followed on from an extremely poor summer last year. The National Bee Unit has continued to offer colony husbandry advice to beekeepers through these prolonged periods of inclement weather."

The Scottish government has announced £200,000 in funding to help bee farmers restock their colonies, but a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokeswoman said: "We do not provide government money for restocking bees. We are working with beekeepers to provide support and training to help them ensure the health of their bees." - Guardian.

GEOLOGICAL UPHEAVAL: More Sinkholes Keep Popping Up Across America - Line Of Sinkholes In Florida County Could Be Sign Of More To Come!

June 14, 2013 - UNITED STATES - Homes in the sinkhole-plagued community of Seffner could be sitting on a fracture line linking them to about 20 other sinkholes, including the 20-foot-deep pit that opened under a home in February and killed Jeffrey Bush. 

And as Hillsborough County enters what one geologist labels "sinkhole weather," the potential for sinkholes to form will only increase. 

A sinkhole that killed a man in Seffner in March is one in a line of sinkholes in Hillsborough County.
© DIRK SHADD | Times

Since Bush's death brought national attention to sinkholes here, they seem to be sprouting all over Hillsborough, including several in the past week. 

"You'll get areas that just seem to get active," said Sandy Nettles, a private geologist in Palm Harbor. "It could be any number of things that actually stimulated it, but usually once they start rolling into an area, you get more action." 

In Plant City, Tom Manus was told to leave his home on North Country Hills Court after a sinkhole was discovered under his porch Saturday. 

On Sunday, a Bob Evans restaurant in Seffner was closed after employees found cracks on the ceiling, floor and walls. Geological tests are ongoing, but that type of damage is associated with sinkholes. 

Later that day, a Tampa family on Jean Street was asked to evacuate after a sinkhole developed in the front yard. The home is east of Hesperides Street and a half mile north of Hillsborough Avenue. 

On Wednesday, a 30-foot-deep possible sinkhole opened under 138th Avenue at Bruce B Downs Boulevard below a 2010 Nissan Versa. The car drove safely off the road, but its tires were damaged. 

Though sinkholes are as much a part of Florida as hurricanes and pythons, their frequency and media coverage in recent months have many wondering whether this string is unusual and where they're coming from. 

Experts say the recent bout of heavy rains, including from Tropical Storm Andrea, could lead to a summer of sinkholes. 

Susanna Martinez Tarokh, a spokeswoman for the Southwest Florida Water Management District, said there were 150 confirmed sinkholes last year in Hernando County during and immediately after Tropical Storm Debby. 

"This is sinkhole weather," said Anthony Randazzo, a retired geology professor at the University of Florida and president of Geohazards Inc. "It's very much to be expected that there would be numerous sinkholes opening up following a tropical storm, especially after a period of drought. This type of weather pattern is very conducive to the triggering of sinkholes." 

Sinkhole formation starts with water. Rocks such as the limestone that dominates the area begin to dissolve when they're exposed to acidic water, such as rain. For eons, acidic water has flowed through the rocks in Florida, dissolving limestone and creating underground voids. When the ground above those voids collapses, a sinkhole is formed. 

All sorts of events can create similar collapses: low water levels, broken sewers and septic tanks, poorly compacted soil after construction, even buried trash and other debris. Many of these cases are not labeled sinkholes, but the effects are similar. 

Though it's hard to say, the sequence of occurrences in east Hillsborough could be linked to one fracture system, Nettles said. 

"We've mapped the sinkholes we work on in Seffner and plotted the locations of the two that opened up previously, and they're all on a straight line," said Nettles, who counts about 20 sinkholes on his map. "Sometimes, something in one of those fracture systems breaks lose, and it creates a whole series of movements." 

Fracture lines have high potential for sinkholes, Nettles said. Intersecting and parallel fracture lines are at an even higher risk. 

"When you get a system that moves, it moves until it starts to stabilize," Nettles said. "You probably had one collapse, and it just reverberates down the line and gets everything else loose." 

Randazzo and Clint Kromhout, a professional geologist with Florida Geological Survey, don't agree with the idea that a few collapsed sinkholes increase the likelihood of others along the same fracture. But areas sitting on a fracture in the limestone are more likely to be exposed to the groundwater that dissolves it, Randazzo said. 

"(A fracture line) can be a very common place where you would form a whole series of sinkholes," Randazzo said. "The fact that they would line up is particularly indicative of that kind of phenomena." 

There's no way to determine what an average number of sinkholes for the state or a particular region would look like, Kromhout said. Many go unreported or unnoticed. And while one region of the state might be more at risk than another based on geology and rainfall, it's nearly impossible to tell whether a series of occurrences is abnormal. 

"Every day in this state, there's likely a sinkhole that occurs that, A, no one sees or, B, no one thinks to say anything about," Kromhout said. - Tampa Bay Times.