I spoke this morning with one of the commercial beekeepers who is currently in California tending his 2700 hives. He has personally lost 47% of his hives with these destructive issues going on. He is hoping that he will at least break even this year and has no hope of a profit. He says everyone is affected and everyone is comparing this to 2007 when Colony Collapse Disorder was first identified as a nationwide concern.
To understand the severity, he explained how bees are introduced to the Amond Orchards. There is a team of Brokers that inspect all hives brought to the orchards. In order for a hive to be allowed into the orchards, it must have at least 8 of 10 frames of bees thriving in the hive. The inspection doesn't look for much other than quantity of bees and the general condition of the hive. If it is sketchy, or looking unhealthy, it is rejected. Due to the lack of sufficient bees, they are now accepting hives with as little as 5 full frames of bees. Never before have they allowed 8 frame hives, but now they will even allow 5 frame boxes as long as the box is full of thriving bees. Still, they are short about 20% of the bees the need to pollenate the orchards.
Hold on, the domino effect will no doubt be felt across the country.
Wow, Brad! This is really big news.
As of year-end the nuc buyers were at 78% lost. It's a comfort and consolation that it's not just us.
I, myself, have lost four of the eight I had going into winter. My most recent loss sounded a lot like what I read about in the info you sent.
On January 7th I gave them an OA vaporization.
On January 8th I checked and had a mite drop of 5. I opened the hive because I have a plastic dome inside. There were lots and lots of bees, plenty of megabee and honey with lots of bees all over the megabee.
On January 12th there were 48 mites and no bees on the dry food.
By January 22nd I went into the bottom box of the hive. No bees dead or alive inside the hive. No dead bees in front of the hive. Lots of food. No idea where or why they left but it wasn't a slow death in and around the boxes.
Sad....
The good news is surely with so many people doing so much timely research hopefully we'll have lots more info. Thanks for sharing this.
I got an e-mail this morning from Project Apis M. I am a member of PAM, and as a club we donate money each year for research through the Oregon State Beekeepers Association. Last year, the ORSBA donated $9,400 to Project Apis M.
Several commercial beekeepers, and friends of ours, are down in California right now pollinating the almonds. This is terrible news for them and us.
Urgent: Widespread Colony Losses Reported
"Severe and sudden honey bee colony losses are being reported across the U.S. as beekeepers prepare for almond pollination. Surveys indicate losses exceeding 50% on average, with some operations experiencing up to 100% losses in the past year. These alarming trends resemble past Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) events and may impact pollination services and food security.
Project Apis m., alongside our partners and leading researchers, are working to understand the scope and causes of these losses. We are gathering data, analyzing samples, and mobilizing resources to support the beekeeping industry.
See the attached pdf doc for more details on what is being done, what we know so far, and next steps for beekeepers."
Inside the attached PDF, is this statement:
"The cause has not yet been identified, however the usual causes of loss, including winter management and high levels of parasitic mites, are not currently indicated causes of these losses".