There has been much discussion on the decline of honeybees in the United States.

What does the data suggest?

 Are colonies in South Carolina, specifically the coastal plain, declining?

What can you do to help protect local honeybee populations?

A recent report by the USDA finds that Honeybee populations are declining in certain area of the United States.

USDA 2024 Report

The report summarizes the changes in the past year compared to the most recent data. Yes the Honeybee populations are down...are the numbers alarming? However, the answer is more complex. Honeybees are not native to North America but were introduced in the early 16th century by European settlers. During the next four centuries they thrived and became a major pollinator. Today they impact much of our fruit and vegetable farmers by providing the needed pollinators. Not much care was required to manage honeybee colonies...they thrived on their own.

That all changed in the later part of the 20th century as global trade increased with the introduction of varroa mites and small hive beetles, both highly destructive to the honeybee populations from other areas of the world. These two pests along with major deforestation for housing and the use of highly poisonous insecticide and other pollutants have led to honeybee population declines in those geographic areas. As our human population grows will the honeybee populations be secure?

There is no real evidence that the honeybee populations will be maintained with the current trends. How long will it be before population declines affect us...take your best guess.

Commercial beekeepers (those with over 500 colonies) and Sideliner beekeepers (those with more than 50 but less than 499 colonies) provide much of the honey and other hive products to our industries and home needs. What matters in our homesites is the backyard beekeepers (those with two colonies and up to 49 colonies) that provide the best benefits to our environment by pollinating local areas where the honeybee colonies could not exist on their own due to human population influences.

You and I can help mitigate some of these trends through personal action.

Those interested in protecting the honeybee populations can help by....

1.Becoming a backyard beekeeper.

2.Helping support by creating environments that support honeybees...(the addition of beneficial plants, reduce pesticide use among other options)

3.Become a supporter of your local beekeeper associations (Blackwater Beekeeper Association serves Horry and Georgetown Counties)

4.Create and Participate in fundraisers to provide programs in our local public, private and home schools.

5.Make a personal donation toward educational programing

Pollinators are vital to the existence of all living things. Listen to what a man who studied the universe said about the value of the humble honeybee.

“If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” - Albert Einstein

Honeybees are that important!

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