40 percent of bee colonies died in the past year
menier111
Published
05/13/2015
More than 40 percent of bee hives died in past year
- List View
- Player View
- Grid View
Advertisement
-
1.
More than two out of five American honeybee colonies died in the past year, and surprisingly the worst die-off was in the summer, according to a federal survey. -
2.
Since April 2014, beekeepers lost 42.1 percent of their colonies, the second highest loss rate in nine years, according to an annual survey conducted by a bee partnership that includes the U.S. Department of Agriculture. -
3.
"What we're seeing with this bee problem is just a loud signal that there's some bad things happening with our agro-ecosystems," said study co-author Keith Delaplane at the University of Georgia. "We just happen to notice it with the honeybee because they are so easy to count." -
4.
But it's not quite as dire as it sounds. That's because after a colony dies, beekeepers then split their surviving colonies, start new ones, and the numbers go back up again, said Delaplane and study co-author Dennis vanEngelsdorp of the University of Maryland. -
5.
Oklahoma, Illinois, Iowa, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Maine and Wisconsin all saw more than 60 percent of their hives die since April 2014, according to the survey.
- REPLAY GALLERY
- 40 percent of bee colonies died in the past year
- NEXT GALLERY
- 18 Times Parents Perfectly Described Parenting
5/5
1/5
0 Comments