Bee decline harms the ecosystem

Miroslav Rozmánek is relieved that his bee colonies appear to be thriving this year.

Last spring, the 75-year-old beekeeping hobbyist had returned to tend to his hives after the winter, only to find one of them completely empty. His loss of an entire colony of up to 60,000 bees was likely at least partly due to a nasty infestation of varroa, a common parasitic mite that attacks bees, the Brno resident said.

"The bees were too weak after the varroa infection. They were probably hungry and went to look for food outside and froze," Rozmánek said.

Still, his loss of only one of five hives was paltry compared with that of his fellow beekeepers. Several of them lost their entire stocks last year, as varroa devastated as much as 30 percent of the nation's beehives.

Around the world, researchers and apiarists have raised serious concerns in recent years over a global bee shortage, fearing that plunging honey bee populations across North America and Europe are resulting in poorly pollinated crops. More alarmingly, the international beekeeping organization Apimondia warned last month that the beekeeping industry in Europe could be wiped out in less than 10 years due to parasites, disease, insecticides and other threats. It is a prospect that could have dire consequences for the agricultural industry.

In the Czech Republic, which has a history of beekeeping that dates to the 10th century, the number of bee colonies has fallen at least 40 percent since 1990 to less than half a million. In May 2008, after a mild winter created ideal conditions for varroa to proliferate, the number of bee colonies dipped as low as 370,289, before bouncing back to near-2007 levels.

While the country's bee population seems to be off to a good start this year, Rozmánek said he believes Apimondia's dire prediction could become reality. "It would be a catastrophe. The whole food chain would collapse," he said. "Just imagine: There would be no fruits, no flowers."

Reasons for the widespread decline in bees are complex, said Asger Sogaard Jorgensen, the Denmark-based president of Apimondia. "In very few cases, we have been able to find one single cause."

Varroa, disease, pesticide-use and low profitability for beekeepers are only a few in a list of around 40 different factors that the European Food Security Agency has compiled as possible reasons for the losses, Jorgensen said.

A lack of diversity in the modern agricultural landscape also limits bees' diets, which makes them more vulnerable if a particular crop fails. Before intensive farming replaced small, mixed farms and forest land, bees enjoyed a more varied diet as they were able to collect nectar from a range of plants that blossomed at different times, beekeepers say. With fewer types of crops, bees are restricted to collecting nectar whenever those crops blossom.

Erratic weather and extreme temperatures also pose a threat, beekeepers say.

Stewards of the ecosystem

In Europe, the economics of beekeeping are dismal. The price of honey is declining as more countries import it from Argentina, China, Australia and other high-yield areas, making it more difficult for local beekeepers to turn a profit, said Miroslav Peroutka, secretary of the Czech Beekeepers Union in Prague.

While one hive in the Czech Republic can produce around 15 to 20 kg of honey, a single hive in Australia, where the warm seasons last longer, can produce up to 200 kg, Peroutka said. "We are not able to compete with these countries."

Thus, like in most other European countries, beekeeping in the Czech Republic is done mostly by hobbyists, who see themselves as stewards of a fragile yet vital component of the ecosystem.

Peroutka estimates only about 3 percent of beekeepers in the European Union are professionals. In the Czech Republic, that number is less than 1 percent.

Honey, beeswax and other bee products are only a side benefit to beekeeping, Peroutka said. "The main reason for breeding the bees is pollination, pollination, pollination."

In Kolovraty, Martin Rinn, 45, took up beekeeping about four years ago and now has 10 colonies, which he tends to about once a week. "My father and my grandfather kept bees," he said, explaining how he became interested in the hobby.

Since beekeeping is often considered a pastime for pensioners, Rinn worries that younger generations won't have the interest or patience to carry on the tradition. "A lot of beekeepers are older, and the young people ... I think they are interested in different things," he said.

Funding of colonies

While experts around the world clamor for solutions to the declining bee populations, beekeeping organizations are also pressing for more government support. "In some countries, the politicians have become aware of the situation and [have] taken steps to support apiculture research, development and promotion," Jorgensen said, but "some countries are reluctant to act."

In the Czech Republic, beekeepers receive nominal subsidies from the government, according to the  Agriculture Ministry.

Last year, each was given 152 Kč per colony. An additional subsidy of 453 Kč was granted to beekeepers in regions afflicted by the previous winter's varroa infestation, such as Prague-West, Rokycany and Ostrava. The ministry said the extra payment was intended to help beekeepers restore the colonies they lost.

The Czech beekeeping industry receives EU funding. Last year, the country received about 54 million Kč for various activities related to beekeeping, including education, technology and medicines to treat bee colonies.

Still, Peroutka says, it isn't enough. "We need more money than the state supports."

However, he says it would be an exaggeration to call the current situation in the Czech Republic a "crisis," and is unconvinced of Apimondia's bleak outlook for the industry.

"I'm an optimist," he said, noting that already the conditions for beekeeping are much better than last year's. "It will survive."

- Martina Čermáková contributed to this report.

Wency Leung can be reached at
wleung@praguepost.com