Bees Problems in Numbers

In 2013, there was one of the worst winters on record for bees. In the U.S., beekeepers lost 31 per cent of their colonies, compared to a loss of 21 per cent the previous winter. In Canada, the Canadian Honey Council reports an annual loss of 35 percent of honey bee colonies in the last three years. In Britain, the Bee Farmers’ Association says its members lost roughly half their colonies over the winter.

According to Sciencemag.org bees have been adversely affected after consuming imidacloprid (a pesticide) Three study groups were used. The first was a control group. The second had a high dose, the third received a low dose.

Honey bees in the treated groups experienced reduced performance by 6 and 20% respectively

The weight loss were shown to be 8 and 12/% more than normal bees

A significantly smaller amount of Queen bees are produced. Control group: about 13.72; high dose group: 2 low dose group 1.4