Why are honey bees in managed bee colonies are now dying en masse in the United States?
Massive honey bee die-offs are happening right now in the United States, with many beekeepers reporting catastrophic colony losses of 70% to 100% over the past year.
But why is this crisis hitting the U.S. so hard while beekeepers in other countries aren’t seeing the same devastation?
One major reason is industrial-scale pollination services, especially in California’s almond industry. Each year, over 2 million honey bee colonies — representing 90% of all managed hives in the U.S. — are trucked to almond groves for pollination. This stressful multi-day transportation of hundreds of beehives on a single flatbed truck stresses the bees, and spreads pathogens, and parasites across multiple bee colonies and locations.
California almonds are just the biggest short-term pollination job for 90% of U.S. managed honey bees each February but there are other short-term migratory beekeeping jobs.
No other country in the world transports honey bees on such large scale and over such large distances!
With migratory beekeeping for 90% of U.S. bee colonies, the constantly migrating colonies rapidly spread pathogens, parasites and their unfit genetics throughout the country.
In the video above, we dive into:
¤ The real reasons why honey bees are dying at an alarming rate in the U.S. ¤ Should we just keep blaming the ‘usual suspects’ of agriculture- the mites and the pesticides for the decline of the honey bees’ health?
¤ How migratory pollination services are weakening honey bee colonies.
¤ Why California’s almond industry is central to this crisis.
¤ Possible solutions for beekeepers, farmers, and consumers to help save the bees!
If you are a beekeeper, honey bee enthusiast, honey lover, nature supporter, or someone who cares about sustainable agriculture, this video is for you!
Help spread awareness! Share this video and leave a comment with your thoughts on the U.S. honey bee crisis. Should large-scale almond growers keep their own hives instead of renting bees?
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————How do we know that it’s migratory beekeeping that contributed to honey bee die-offs?
The very first people to raise the alarm about large-scale honey bee die-offs in the U.S. were major honey bee brokers. This year, they struggled to secure enough healthy colonies for the February almond pollination season.
Bee brokers typically source rental hives by reaching out to large-scale commercial beekeepers who have previously participated in migratory pollination. However, many of these beekeepers experienced massive colony losses.
In other words, there is a strong correlation between commercial beekeepers suffering severe die-offs and those who rented their honey bee colonies specifically for almond pollination.
This video produced by https://ForestBeehive.com – Maine-based apiary where we practice natural treatment-free, beekeeping and where bees only forage naturally so we don’t have to sugar-feed them ever!
