Science · Honey bee healthNorthern Ireland bee losses: 130 colonies lost despite better winter survivalAired October 28, 2026 at 12:49 PM UTCWritten October 28, 2026 at 12:52 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:07Beekeepers lost one hundred and thirty honey bee colonies in a single winter.0:11Losses fell from the previous winter, but roughly one colony in four still0:15disappeared among Northern Ireland's survey participants.0:17The question is whether that improvement points to healthier colonies over time.0:21The participating beekeepers started winter two thousand and twenty five twenty six0:25with five hundred and seventy living colonies and lost one hundred and thirty.0:28Dividing those losses by the starting total gives twenty-two point eight percent.0:31Those counts anchor the findings, but they also expose a discrepancy in the0:35published percentage.0:36More than one hundred beekeepers answered the survey, the highest response count in0:40five years.0:40The Agri, Food and Biosciences Institute, or AFBI, has run the annual exercise for0:45eighteen years.0:46It follows beekeeping practices and challenges.0:49These figures describe the people who answered, rather than every colony across0:52Northern Ireland.0:53The winter loss rate appears as both twenty-three percent and twenty-four percent.0:57The lower figure matches the rounded calculation from one hundred thirty divided by1:00five hundred and seventy.1:01Nobody has explained whether the difference comes from the survey calculation or1:05needs a correction.1:06Either percentage puts losses below the previous winter's thirty three percent, but1:10the earlier figures show how much losses can move between winters.1:13The latest result sits close to the level two winters earlier, while losses in the1:17two winters before that were considerably lower.1:19Losses were eleven percent in two thousand and twenty one twenty second, then around1:23fourteen percent the following winter.1:25They climbed to twenty four percent in two thousand and twenty-three twenty fourth1:28and thirty three percent in two thousand and twenty-four twenty fifth, before1:31falling to the latest conflicting figures of twenty-three percent and twenty-four1:34percent.1:34The highest historical figure identified was forty, three percent in winter two1:38thousand and twelve thirteenth.1:40These annual percentages give researchers a useful history, but they can't be turned1:44into a regional total of lost colonies.1:46A larger response also doesn't automatically mean the survey represents every1:50beekeeper.1:50AF BY entomologist Joanna Kerbes says the survey helps monitor bee health, track1:55winter losses, and examine disease prevention.1:57Archie Murchy, who heads its plant health and integrated pest management branch,2:01says weather affects bees, their food sources, and their susceptibility to2:04infections.2:05Murchy says changing weather patterns could contribute to colony losses.2:09How much particular conditions contributed to this winter's losses hasn't been2:13measured.2:13The largest specified category in the findings concerned problems with the queen2:17bee.2:18Queen problems were linked to about fifty, one percent of losses, roughly half the2:21colonies lost.2:22Storms, flitting, and theft together accounted for ten percent.2:25Because that total includes theft, it can't tell us the share loss to weather alone.2:29Other outcomes included dead bees or an empty hive.2:32A lost colony can mean the bees died or left, sometimes leaving a queen and some2:37nurse bees behind.2:38For beekeepers preparing for winter, the practical task is keeping a functioning2:41colony alive.2:42With food, it can reach.2:44The National Bee Unit's September2026 guidance recommends starting preparations in2:48late summer.2:49Colonies should have a functioning queen.2:51Healthy bees, adequate food, and weatherproof hives.2:54Food also needs to be accessible.2:55Bees can starve even when they have stores they can't reach.2:58The guidance calls for regular winter checks, especially in early spring when3:01starvation risk is high.3:03The survey also examines management of varroa.3:05A mite that feeds on honeybees and can contribute to colony collapse, first detected3:09in the UK in one thousand nine hundred and ninety, two in Northern Ireland in two3:13thousand and two.3:14It's no longer a statutory pest.3:16Turkish authorities confirmed detection of a different mite, tropeleapse, on3:20thirty-one August two thousand and twenty six in Borka, bordering Georgia.3:23Murchy places its Georgian detection in two thousand and twenty-four.3:26Tropeleolapse attacks developing bees, and he warns it breeds rapidly and can3:31quickly overwhelm a hive.3:32Official guidance treats this Asian-origin parasite as an exotic pest that must be3:36reported.3:37Accidental introduction into the UK is a serious risk.3:40Murchy warns it could spread further into Europe, but tea here is no timetable for3:44that spread.3:45One better winter gives participating beekeepers some relief after heavier losses.3:49Establishing whether that improvement lasts takes more than a single year's decline.3:53AFBI's researchers say they still don't have enough data to analyze long-term3:58trends.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSS
