Alarming Drop In Bee Populations Has Farmers, Ranchers, Beekeepers, Scientists Scrambling

It is now an undeniable fact that honeybee numbers all over the world are decreasing dramatically-both in the wild and in beekeepers' colonies. While this decline has been in process for more than 50 years, it is only in the last 10 years or so that the decrease has accelerated to such a degree as to cause a lot of consternation among the scientific community researching this problem. There are whole species of bees that are disappearing from the landscape. Contributing to the issue is that the root cause of the decline in numbers has yet to be definitively determined. This has left scientists, beekeepers, and bee removal experts stumped with regards to finding a means to fix this very serious problem.

It has been well documented that the world's food supply is essentially dependent on the work of bees. Honeybees are responsible for pollinating most cash food crops, from tomatoes to oranges and everything in between, and the decline in population leaves the world's growers in a bind with estimated crop losses at $15 million in the US alone. In addition to pollinating the fruits and vegetables that people eat, bees also pollinate the food crops grown for animal use, such as corn and grains fed to cattle. Domesticated bees (raised by beekeepers) are being used in growing numbers and certainly help ease the problem of the decline in numbers of wild bees, but farmers must pay beekeepers for the use of their hives, which adds one more expense to a business that already operates on razor-thin profit margins, as well as the cost of groceries.

It is also becoming a logistical problem as the population worldwide continues to grow, demanding more land go under the till for production of food. There is already too much land under cultivation for the existing beekeeper-owned hives to pollinate. Although there is not much the average person can do to help, one thing we can do is to behave eco-responsibly around native and domesticated bees. Most will not sting you if left alone, and if a hive is found in an undesirable location, call in an eco-responsible bee removal service rather than an exterminator to handle the matter for you.

Although, as stated above the underlying cause for the decrease in population has yet to be positively established, there are several probable culprits that experts believe are contributing to the problem. The elevated use of pesticides is first on the list, as increasing amounts of these have been found in hives, honeycombs, and in dead bees. Some beekeepers, in fact, are starting keep their bees away from crops that use excessive amounts of pesticide sprays, such as some citrus crops cultivated in southern states. Hives are also being plagued by various kinds of mites, which if not caught quickly enough can decimate an entire hive population within just a few months.

When their hives become too large, wild honeybees will create new ones, considerably away from the original. They do this by surrounding a new queen in a huge clump, and "swarming" in quest of a new site for the hive. These colonies can show up in some very unlikely, and often scary places, such as a neighborhood park, your backyard or even in downtown urban areas hanging from a convenient tree, while the swarm is in the process of finding a new home.

Of additional concern are bees that have actually constructed a hive in the walls or attic of your property, or in the branches of a tree in your backyard. Walls and attics are not unusual residences for hives since they provide more protection and are easier for the colony to defend. This placement is not only scary for residents, but can actually damage your home.

Whether or not or not you encounter a swarm, or have a colony infestation in your home; in order to protect these very essential critters from further decline, it is important to locate a bee removal service that will remove the hive, undamaged, and transfer it to a beekeeper, rather than exterminate the residents. The eminent result for failure to act eco-responsibly around bees could possibly be the end or incredible shortage of foods that people have come to rely on in our diets.