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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
From:
Peter Loring Borst <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Sun, 4 Feb 2018 09:58:19 -0500
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Following the question of reliability of statistics:

One of the most significant challenges for empirical studies of honey bee populations lies
in the interpretation of data from the Honey Report and the Census of Agriculture, the only
available historical records of bee populations. These data have been collected to track honey
production but lack several indicators related to pollination services.

First, many operations and hives are not included in the hive counts. Honey Report hive
counts, which are yearly and date back to 1945, do not track beekeepers who specialize in
pollination and do not sell honey. In addition, beekeepers are only asked to report hives from
which honey was extracted and the hives that only provide pollination services are left out
of counts. The Census of Agriculture counts all hives from operations that produce and sell
$1,000 or more of agricultural products but pollination revenues are not considered agricultural
products in the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Accordingly,
the Census misses beekeepers who specialize in pollination. Second, both surveys count
hives only once a year. Honey Reports questionnaires ask for the maximum number of honey
producing hives at any time of the year. The Census reports hives counted on December 31
of each year. Beekeepers often split the colony of bees in a hive to increase their number
of hives seasonally or to replace lost hives. As a result, neither hive count provides reliable
estimates of the abundance of bees during the seasonal bloom of any particular crop.

The Bioeconomics of Honey Bees and Pollination
Environ Resource Econ (2015) 60:143–164

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