(NAFB.com) – U.S. commercial beekeepers discovered their colonies of honeybees in near or total collapse earlier this year. There wasn’t a clear explanation for what the industry is calling the worst bee die-off in U.S. history, and over half the nation’s managed honey bee colonies appear to have experienced a mass die-off. These losses, combined with honey bee die-off events at other times of the year, mean many beekeepers have seen 70 to even 100 percent of their colonies collapse during the past 12 months. Those numbers come from a recent report by Project Apis m, a honeybee research organization. “The losses are severe, broad, and may impact food security through inadequate pollination services,” the report says. “Financial losses to the apiary industry are estimated to be well over $139 million.” Beekeepers learned of the die-off in January as they readied their hives for transportation to California for the annual almond pollination.
