SAT Reading Practice Test 3

This passage is adapted from Richard J. Sharpe and Lisa Heyden, “Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder is Possibly Caused by a Dietary Pyrethrum Deficiency.” ©2009 by ElsevierLtd. Colony collapse disorder is characterized by the disappearance of adult worker bees from hives.

Honey bees are hosts to the pathogenic large
ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor (Varroa mites).
These mites feed on bee hemolymph(blood) and can
kill bees directly or by increasing their susceptibility
5 to secondary infection with fungi, bacteria or viruses.
Little is known about the natural defenses that keep
the mite infections under control.
Pyrethrums are a group of flowering plants which
includeChrysanthemum coccineum, Chrysanthemum
10 cinerariifolium, Chrysanthemum marschalli, and
related species. These plants produce potent
insecticides with anti-mite activity. The naturally
occurring insecticides are known as pyrethrums.
A synonymfor the naturally occurring pyrethrums is
15 pyrethrin and synthetic analogues of pyrethrums are
known as pyrethroids. In fact, the human mite
infestation known as scabies (Sarcoptes scabiei) is
treated with a topical pyrethrum cream.
We suspectthat the bees of commercial bee
20 colonies which are fed mono-crops are nutritionally
deficient. In particular, we postulate that the problem
is a diet deficient in anti-mite toxins: pyrethrums,
and possibly other nutrients which are inherentin
such plants. Without, at least, intermittent feeding on
25 the pyrethrum producing plants, bee colonies are
susceptible to mite infestations which can become
fatal either directly or due to a secondary infection of
immunocompromised or nutritionally deficient bees.
This secondary infection can be viral, bacterial or
30 fungal and may be due to one or more pathogens.
In addition, immunocompromised or nutritionally
deficient bees may be further weakened when
commercially produced insecticides are introduced
into theirhives by bee keepers in an effort to fight
35 mite infestation. We further postulate that the proper
dosage necessary to prevent mite infestation may be
better left to the bees, who may seek out or avoid
pyrethrum containing plants depending on the
amount necessary to defend against mites and the
40 amount already consumed by the bees, which in
higher doses could be potentially toxic to them.
This hypothesis can best be tested by a trial
wherein a small number of commercial honey bee
colonies areoffered a number of pyrethrum
45 producing plants, as well as a typical bee food source
such as clover, while controls are offered only the
clover. Mites could then be introduced to each hive
with note made as to the choice of the bees,and the
effects of the mite parasites on the experimental
50 colonies versus control colonies.
It might be beneficial to test wild-type honey bee
colonies in this manner as well, in case there could be
some genetic difference between them that affects the
bees’preferences for pyrethrum producing flowers.


Pathogen Occurance in Honey Bee Colonies With and Without Colony Collapse DisorderAdapted from Diana L. Cox-Foster et al., “A Metagenomic Survey of Microbes in Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder.” ©2007 by American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The table above shows, for colonies with colony collapse disorder and forcolonies without colony collapse disorder, the percent of colonies having honey bees infected by each of four pathogens and by all four pathogens together.