colony collapse disorder

American  

noun

1. a pathological condition affecting a large number of honeybee colonies, in which various stresses may lead to the abrupt disappearance of worker bees from the hive, leaving only the queen and newly hatched bees behind and thus causing the colony to stop functioning. CCD

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colony collapse disorder Scientific  

1. A condition chiefly affecting the hives of domesticated honeybees, characterized by the sudden disappearance and death of so many worker bees that the colony cannot be maintained.

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Etymology

Origin of colony collapse disorder

First recorded in 2006

Example Sentences

Those who keep and study bees, as Jesse Plemons’s character does in the chilling sci-fi black comedy “Bugonia,” have paid a lot of attention to a phenomenon called colony collapse disorder, or CCD.

From The Wall Street Journal

Some fungi produce powerful antiviral compounds which reduce colony collapse disorder in honeybees.

From New York Times

The “colony collapse disorder” that you may have heard about in the media is not just the result of some well-known pathogens but also of honeybees being literally stressed to death by ruthless beekeeping practices.

From Scientific American

In the latter case, a class of man-made insecticides called neonicotinoids has been linked to colony collapse disorder and plummeting bee populations.

From Salon

Bee health first attracted widespread attention in 2006 with the emergence of Colony Collapse Disorder, a phenomenon where the majority of adult worker bees in a colony disappeared, leaving their honey and pollen stores and some nurse bees behind to care for the queen and remaining immature bees.

From Salon