Summary
US honeybee deaths hit a record high, with beekeepers losing over 60% of colonies this winter.
The crisis threatens pollination of key crops and has led to financial ruin for many beekeepers. Scientists cite climate change, habitat loss, pesticide use, varroa mites, and poor handling as potential causes.
The USDA is investigating the latest losses, but Trump-era staff cuts have slowed research, prompting Cornell University to assist.
Despite increased colony numbers from rising beekeeper interest, loss rates continue to surge, endangering agriculture and ecosystems.
It’s definitely pesticide. Plus a lack of plant diversity. If farmers focused on building strips of natives bordering their fields honeybees wouldn’t even be necessary. Honeybees are an invasive species in the US. There are thousands of amazing American bee species that would pollinate our crops if we leave a little room for them, and stopped using pesticides and herbicides everywhere, all they need is a small amount of habitat.
Where I live, in a very large city, there is a ban on roundup and we have no issues with a lack of bees, as long as there’s not acres of lawn.
I’m an ecologist and I used to work at a botanical garden. we had a bee researcher who found 120 species of native bees, plus tons of wild honeybee colonies breaking off new ones every year. He believed it was the plant diversity in the gardens that contributed to the number of species.
Light pollution is also a big contributor
IIRC, there was a study a few years ago that basically shrieked “IT’S THE NEONICOTINOIDS, IDIOT”, and the response seems to have been “well, yes, but we make money selling that, so find something else to blame, dumbass.”
I’m in central California and our insect populations have cratered HARD. Used to be that you couldn’t drive east-west across the San Joaquin valley without getting the front of your car called in bugs; it hasn’t been a problem at all for about two years now. I’ve seen probably a 95% decline in butterflies and bee-like insects; that is, I see about 1/20th of the butterflies I used to. This is deeply worrying. I had a dude come and offer to flush my lawn with pesticide to get all of the bugs out of it, and I took a moment to calmly talk to him about how he’s contributing to complete ecological collapse.
The specific study I remember was that the Neonicotinoids weren’t outright killing them, but weakening them enough for a virus transmitted by a mite would. Not that I don’t think this class of pesticide should be restricted or outright banned, one simple solution is to not spray during bloom. They also found the beta acids from hops would repel or kill the mites that transmitted the virus.
Was personally just looking around and thinking “Where the fuck are all the bees?”. They’re normally extremely active in my area this time of year, and am devastated to hear this.
The bees were just lazy and couldn’t pull themselves up by their bootstraps. The survivors will surely be stronger.
It’s burnout. They see the headlines everyday, and the flowers just don’t seem as bright as they used to.
Pesticides and climate destruction?
Waiting for the next headline to have “Experts suggest” this.
While half of america is like “saving bees is tax dollar fraud. Kill the bees!”
that is fine, Trump orders retracting word pesticides from every article, done.
I got hella bees that come and pollinate these holly shrubs in my backyard
FYI: Honey bees are an invasive species everywhere but Eurasia and Africa
I just want to point out that you just said everywhere but and then listed around 60% of the total world land area.
Thanks for the clarification. Let me also clarify that the USA are within that 40% where honey bees are not native to and brought there by Europeans.
Were the cause not pesticides that kill all insects including native species, a decline of that invasive one would have been good news.
I mean, it would still be pretty bad news as most of them are domesticated farm animals that are vital to our agriculture.
It’s the guns, stupid. Stop mounting canons on drones and bee on bee violence will drop
