Local beekeepers take stock of lost colonies
Even in the midst of a global pandemic, life must go on.
Insect life, especially.
Without pollinators like honey bees, crops world-wide would be depleted and food sources would dissolve.
And many bee experts believe now is not the time for a global food shortage.
To monitor the honey bee population, the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service expects to launch its quarterly colony loss survey this week.
“Initial contact might change a little bit,” said Adam Peters, agricultural statistician for NASS. “We can't actually go out and knock on people's doors.”
The colony loss survey is a good way for beekeepers and government officials to monitor honey bee health in North America, according to Ken Bowman, Beekeepers of ABCI president.
Bowman, who lives in Kiskiminetas Township in Armstrong County, works with more than 80 beekeepers in Armstrong, Butler, Clarion and Indiana counties.
He participates in the survey because he believes in the value of the information.“I'm a scientist,” Bowman said. “If you want to solve a problem ... define the problem.”Cranberry Township public works employee and local beekeeper Mason Miller also participates in the survey annually.“I check it every year,” Miller said. “(Just) to see.”Miller helps manage Cranberry Highlands' Community Apiary. The apiary opened in July 2019 and provides space for local beekeepers who don't have a lot of property to house their hives.The apiary is used to educate beekeepers. It's also used to teach community members about the importance of honey bee health.“It's open to the public,” Miller said. “Just to make them aware of the struggles that are going on.”The colony loss survey provides a snapshot of honey bee health over the course of a year.“We're tracking the number of colonies created and lost each quarter,” Peters said.Miller said while many people believe the leading cause of honey bee deaths is pesticides, mites and loss of habitat are just as deadly.The survey gives beekeepers an opportunity to see what afflictions are affecting colonies around North America.“It puts in perspective ... the magnitude of the problem,” Bowman said. “As president, I use it for understanding what are the training needs within our club.”
Miller and Bowman said colony loss data helped local beekeepers in the past understand American foulbrood, an infectious bee disease caused by spore-forming bacteria.The survey includes comments from beekeepers about why they think they lost bees in any particular quarter.These comments, according to Bowman, help other beekeepers assess potential threats to their own hives.“(Beekeepers) try to identify what they believe is the cause of the loss,” Peters said. “We're tasked with the survey itself.”Both Miller and Bowman lost bees this winter.Miller's colonies went from five to three.Bowman's long-term goal is to produce and legally sell honey at retail outlets. He lost 10 or 11 of his 12 colonies this winter, a loss that can only be fixed by buying or catching bees this spring.“I'm learning my lessons the hard way,” Bowman said. “I'm going to be monitoring them differently though the summer and the fall.”COVID-19 has affected beekeepers, though not in the way some might think.“Beekeepers tend to be older Americans,” Bowman said.Bowman said ABCI canceled its March and April meetings because of quarantine concerns and will cancel May meetings, if it needs to.Bowman thinks the pandemic will move people toward being more self-reliant when it comes to food production. He expects “victory gardens” — food gardens planted during World War I and II for the war effort — to make a comeback.“As more and more people put in victory gardens ... they will benefit from a lot of pollinators,” Bowman said.“One third of our food is pollinated by honey bees,” Miller said.Bowman encourages voters to support funding for federal and state beekeeping programs in the future.Despite survey officials meeting every day to discuss how to proceed, Peters said the count remains on schedule: Data collection will take place through April and the findings will be published in August.Beekeepers will be invited to respond to the survey via mail, phone or online.“Whatever is most convenient,” Peters said.Peters said the NASS probably doesn't have enough data to tell if the lost colony population is going up or down. To the best of his knowledge, the process is “cyclical.”“Going forward, I think we'll be able to make much better predictions,” Peters said.
