Colony Losses over 40% in USA

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Walrus

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The figures represent just under 12% of managed colonies.....it might be worse.
It says hobby beekeepers reported the greatest losses, but only marginally.
Maybe more hobby keepers participated in the survey?
Migratory beekeeping aside, doesn't most of the commercial queen rearing happen in the South and aren't a lot of bees/queens exported North for hobbyists? No wonder they don't last over winter.
 
Walrus said:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/06/190619142532.htm

https://beeinformed.org/results/2018-2019/

I know this is a UK forum but I still think it's interesting to cast an eye around the beekeeping world. Winter losses in the USA had been steadily falling from 2007/8 to 2016/17 (36% to 21%) but in the last two years it has bounced.

Apparently there is no statistical link to migratory beekeeping being the culprit.
Click to expand...

Maybe the stress of migration is offset by the abundance of pollen and an owner who is keen to keep on top of varroa?
 
Unless studies like this take into account basic environmental factors like the weather then they have very little validity.

the US suffered one of its coldest winter for some time over 2018/19 and would have been a significant contributing factor to colony losses with temps getting as low as -30c it killed people and animals in zoos let alone bee colonies.
And these people call this research.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January%E2%80%93February_2019_North_American_cold_wave

https://www.dw.com/en/us-midwest-hit-by-winter-freeze-colder-than-antarctica/a-47301287
 
thedozzer said:
Unless studies like this take into account basic environmental factors like the weather then they have very little validity.

the US suffered one of its coldest winter for some time over 2018/19 and would have been a significant contributing factor to colony losses with temps getting as low as -30c it killed people and animals in zoos let alone bee colonies.
And these people call this research.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January%E2%80%93February_2019_North_American_cold_wave

https://www.dw.com/en/us-midwest-hit-by-winter-freeze-colder-than-antarctica/a-47301287
Click to expand...

The article walrus kindly posted clearly links extreme weather as a probable factor in losses.
 
maddydog said:
The article walrus kindly posted clearly links extreme weather as a probable factor in losses.
Click to expand...
Hi Maddydog
"including increases in extreme weather."
that was all i could find that acknowledged the very extreme winter they have just had (it was a 1:100 year event), and i did have a look thought the list of references for both papers and not one was weather related, so it was not my wish to be ungrateful about Walrus's post as i read his blog to, and respect his knowledge.
I just get very frustrated with research that doesn't show basic loading factors in percentile data, but likes to use alarmist wording that may be inaccurate.
I would imagine that if you could overlay the winter patterns with colony losses you may find some correlation and would then have a base line trend to work from.
It may be that with the winter they have just had 40% losses may be normal or on the low side?
 
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Erichalfbee said:
The figures represent just under 12% of managed colonies.....it might be worse.
It says hobby beekeepers reported the greatest losses, but only marginally.
Maybe more hobby keepers participated in the survey?
Migratory beekeeping aside, doesn't most of the commercial queen rearing happen in the South and aren't a lot of bees/queens exported North for hobbyists? No wonder they don't last over winter.
Click to expand...

I went to a talk by Mike Palmer a couple of years ago and he commented that much of the queen rearing in the USA is done in Florida .. some of it from what, as I recall, he termed dubious queen stock. Sold all over the USA to migratory beekeepers who need huge numbers of colonies to serve the massive pollination requirement.

Having seen videos of how some commercial migratory operators treat their colonies I'm amazed that any of the bees survive.

If they were animals and not insects there would be a public outcry.

Mind you .. I've just seen on BBC news an article about (In France I would add) wind farms (in particular) and also phone masts affecting animals in the vicinity, cows dying and reduced production .. one of the farms shown as affected was a rabbit farm .. 10's of thousands of rabbits kept in galvanised boxes about ten to a box which appeared to be about three feet square. Farmer was blaming a phone mast in the vicinity for higher than average deaths of his stock .. In the background I could see pigs flying ...

I wonder what the EU requirements for Rabbit Farming are .. ? Unbelievable conditions.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world...ery-surrounds-animal-deaths-on-france-s-farms

48 seconds in.
 
thedozzer said:
it was not my wish to be ungrateful about Walrus's post as i read his blog to, and respect his knowledge.
Click to expand...

Very kind, thanks :)

However, I'm just getting started on my beekeeping journey and don't claim to have any more knowledge than anybody (certainly a lot less than many on here). The bee farmers I interviewed for my book are heroes to me, but even they freely admit that what works for them may not work for others. I have been struck by how most bee farmers seem quite humble hardworking people who love what they do, love their bees, and are always prepared to listen and learn - including those I met in the USA (Mike Palmer, Ray Olivarez, Randy Oliver)
 
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pargyle said:
I wonder what the EU requirements for Rabbit Farming are .. ? .
Click to expand...

Probably similar to chickens etc.

Think you'll find that whilst in the UK, we blindly abide by all the rules, in France & Germany the application of EU rulings is somewhat les precise and often with >3-4 year delays.

You could also enquire about BSE in the German National herd and get frustrating results, especially when they bang bovine gelatine in all the Haribo products they produce!:ban:
Things are going to be very interesting after the end of October.

By the way, who eats, or for that matter "Farms" Rabbit over here anyway?
 
I'm sure the freak weather last year was a factor. There is a breakdown of survey data here which is interesting in that there is a very clear difference between losses of commercial beekeepers vs. sideliners (in USA a sideliner = less than 50 hives)

https://bip2.beeinformed.org/survey/

From what I have seen and heard California is the capital of queen rearing in the States. That's what Californians told me :icon_204-2: Olivarez Honey Bees work closely with Albert Robertson in Canada who breeds the Saskatraz bees. Lots of the OHB queens made in California and Hawaii actually come from Saskatraz breeder queens.
 
MartinL said:
By the way, who eats, or for that matter "Farms" Rabbit over here anyway?
Click to expand...

I like a rabbit casserole ....My family get a bit miffed that I would eat a fluffy bunny but I was brought up just after WW2 and wild rabbit was a staple meat in our family so never developed the FB syndrome. I like a bit of venison as well but the family are bambi cuddlers. Both are good lean meats and much better for you than other red meats. If you are going to eat meat - as long as it has had a caring life and has been humanely slaughtered - then it's just another source of protein. My concern would be eating rabbit from the sort of farms on the BBC clip in my ealrier post ... really don't like it.

RSPCA say:

Number of rabbits farmed

It is very difficult to get any accurate, up to date figures on the number of rabbits farmed for meat in the UK. We believe that any rabbit farming industry in the UK is fairly small-scale. Greater numbers are reared in other European countries. In 2011, around 326 million rabbits were slaughtered in the EU as a whole.
 
pargyle said:
I like a rabbit casserole . . . . . . . . . . . . wild rabbit was a staple meat in our family . . . . I like a bit of venison as well . . . . . Both are good lean meats and much better for you than other red meats.
.
Click to expand...
My point was, why would you want to farm something that is just out there waiting to be shot for free (minus the cost of a couple of cartridges + your torch batteries)??:bump:

There's a vast difference between Rabbit & Venison.
Rabbit needs to be eaten with something that contains the vital chemicals your body uses to digest the flesh, hence casserole. :puke:

Venison on the other hand is, as you say fine to eat, (+ has a far superior taste / texture).:winner1st: It is more or less farmed already and therefore fairly well controlled.
Rabbits, like the Grey Squirrels are little more than vermin, requiring extensive control.
 
The most important reason to USA 's bee losses is varroa.

Summer and winter losses have been almost same size, but now winter losses were really high and summer losses low.

Backyard beekeeper's losses are about double compared to professionals. Reason to that is that people believe better on varroa tolerant bees than scientic reports.
 
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Finman said:
The most important reason to USA 's bee losses is varroa.

Summer and winter losses have been almost same size, but now winter losses were really high and summer losses low.

Backyard beekeeper's losses are about double compared to professionals. Reason to that is that people believe better on varroa tolerant bees than scientic reports.
Click to expand...

I have a friend who keeps bees in California. She says vsh bees are big business and hobby beekeepers buy them thinking they don’t need to do anything else.
 
pargyle said:
Disgusting conditions on the continent ...I can't think that rabbits reared under those conditions taste anything like rabbit ...
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I couldn’t even look at the link.
When I was in Peru Guinea Pigs were eaten but only on very special occasions. They were kept as pets running freely, being spoilt with treats and regarded as part of the family. When the time came they were dispatched quickly and with skill. If you’re going to be eaten it seems a decent enough life before hand.
 
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