Decline of bees piques interest

Last May, a fifth-grade class at Sutterville Elementary School shouted, "We're going to Disneyland!"

The 32 students earned the trip by winning the top prize in a statewide environmental contest.

Now, a new group of fifth-graders is seeking back-to-back victories for the South Land Park school in the same competition.

Like last year's champions, the current Sutterville contestants are taught by Mitch Carnie, who last week said their soon-to-be-submitted entry may be better than the one he oversaw last year.

In response to declining bee colonies in the United States, 33 students have been studying bees since the fall – learning everything from how the insects are born and what they eat to how they pollinate crops.

They have spoken to experts about possible causes of colony collapse disorder (CCD), the mysterious honeybee condition that has claimed the lives of billions of bees.

"My idea was to have a solar-energy project for this year, but the students wanted to do the bee project," Carnie said.

Part of the motivation, he said, was a desire "to save the honeybees from CCD."

The project may not have flown without Conner Daniels, 11, who became focused on honeybees after they invaded the backyard of his Land Park home.

"They just came into our lemon tree, probably in the beginning of September," Daniels said. "Their beehive was on the tree branch, about 8 feet off the ground.

"There were perhaps 5,000 bees," said Daniels, who, along with his family, learned that if you don't bother the bees, they won't bother you.

Daniels said he and his family "became excited. We thought it was like a big cluster of bees."

The excitement spread to the classroom soon after, when Daniels suggested that the class study bees as its annual environmental project.

When winter began, the bees in the lemon tree began to die, the likely victims of plunging temperatures and strong winds.

"We're hoping that it wasn't CCD that caused them to die," Carnie said.

With his father's help, Daniels gently removed the moribund, 20-pound beehive and took it to school.

It now sits in Carnie's classroom, along with boxfuls of bee papers, sketches and reports his students have amassed.

In January, Carnie's class mingled with farmers and beekeepers from across the nation at a National Beekeeping Conference held in Sacramento.

During the event, the students performed "The Honey Bee Song," which they wrote themselves. The lyrics include:

"Honeybees, please come home

We need you here at the honeycomb.

That colony collapse disorder

Is crossing every border.

So honeybees, please come home … "

The song, with music by Land Park musician Ken Cooper, became the soundtrack for a two-minute bee movie car- toon produced by the class. To view the film, visit: www.sacbee.com/links.

As the song indicates, the need to help honeybees is urgent, said Olivia Sowles, 10.

"The bees are disappearing, and if we don't stop it, we won't have any food to eat," she said. "They pollinate all the plants that our foods come from."

Because no one really knows the cause of CCD, the students are supporting CCD research by raising funds for that purpose.

To date, they have collected about $550, mostly from classmates.

Donations may be mailed to Room 22, Sutterville Elementary School, 4967 Monterey Way, Sacramento, CA 95822. Checks should be made out to Sutterville PTA, Room 22.

All donations will be forwarded to CCD researchers.

A 16-page portfolio containing their project will be mailed Friday to the contest that is now known as the Disney Environmentality Challenge.

The contest is sponsored by the Walt Disney Co. in partnership with the California Environmental Education Interagency Network.

Sutterville's winning project last year was, "The Great Watershed Investigation: Saving Our Burrowing Owls and Raptors."

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• Call The Bee's Edgar Sanchez, (916) 321-1088.