>I think we have discussed this recently but I couldn't find the reference. I found this 1993 data from Malcolm Sanford, though. 

I think it is fair to say that we won't get anywhere very useful by using 20 year old incomplete data.

Here is what I came up with ...still incomplete, but perhaps someone else can help fill in the blanks or correct the numbers I've found.

http://www.abfnet.org/associations/10537/files/Hone-03-18-2013.pdf
....looks like 2.5 million hives for beekeepers with more than 5 hives

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/29/science/earth/soaring-bee-deaths-in-2012-sound-alarm-on-malady.html?_r=0
....looks like 1.6 million hives in the almonds.

Assuming that not much almond pollination is being done by beekeepers with less than 5 hives, it seems that 64% (2/3) of the bees owned by those with more than 5 hives are going to the almonds?

What we don't have is a number of hives for those with less than 5 (in my area this is almost every beekeeper).

For those that do bring bees to the almonds, what percentage of your hives do you actually bring?  If the number was 2/3 for everyone, that would account for the 2.5 million hives reported above.

Another interesting data point is that according to this:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/br/beelosses/index.htm

"Nearly 20 percent of the beekeepers who pollinated almonds lost 50 percent or more of their colonies, according to vanEngelsdorp. "

I'd rather have accurate figures to refer to....anyone with some good numbers (or reasons mine are bad) please chime in.

deknow

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html