Bee population collapse 'could be saved by British species'

Britain could be saved from the devastating effects of a collapse in its bee population by turning to a native British species, which is more aggressive and hairier than the southern European honeybees favoured by apiarists.By Ian Johnston
5:22PM BST 17 May 2009

One in three hives were lost over the last winter alone for reasons that are not clearly understood although bad weather, the use of insecticides, a lack of wildflowers and the varroa mite, which has spread rapidly since arriving in Britain in 1992, are thought to be partly to blame.

However, the majority of the bees in Britain's 274,000 hives are actually a subspecies which originated in southern and eastern Europe.

New research has found the native black honeybee could be better able to survive any external threats as it is better equipped to deal with the British weather.

A study by the Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders' Association (BIBBA), backed by The Co-Operative supermarket, found the black honeybees' thick hair and larger body helped them to keep warm and cope with the shorter breeding season in Britain.

Paul Monaghan, the Co-operative's head of social goals, said the supermarket was taking the bee crisis seriously and asked the public to report sightings of the species so more research could be carried out.

"The hardy native black honeybee has had a bad press over the years, but it may hold the key to reversing the decline in the UK's honeybee population," he said.

"There are isolated populations of the native black bee dotted around the country and we want to help BIBBA to confirm these and map these populations.

"We would also like to help to develop a breeding programme that would increase the number of native colonies and hopefully help reduce the losses experienced in recent years."

Bees play a key role in pollinating many crops and are estimated to be worth anything from £165 million to more than £850 million to the UK economy.

Some 35 per cent of our diet depends on pollination of crops by bees and it is often said that if bees died out, humans would follow just four years later, a view sometimes attributed to Albert Einstein.

The British Beekeepers' Association (BBKA) is also urging gardeners at the Royal Chelsea Flower Show, which begins on Tuesday, to plant bee-friendly flowers. It is recommending flowering trees and shrubs to plant throughout the year to provide a constant supply of food.

Philippa O'Brien, who designed the BBKA garden at the show, has planted 10 different types of trees which produce pollen and nectar throughout the bees' active months.

"One of the best ways to help the honey bee is to plant a succession of flowering trees," she said.

"Five or six large trees can provide as much forage for bees as an acre of wild flower meadow. They also provide a single source of nectar that bees find easy to harvest.

"Gardeners are tuned into the seasons: they know when there is likely to be a shortage of flowering plants locally and this is the time to plant pollen rich annuals or hardy perennials."

Vince Cable MP, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, was among the first to urge the government to take action over the declining numbers of bees.

He previously described how he was "crushed" by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who viewed it as a waste of money but had since come to realise the serious nature of the problem.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5339370/Bee-population-collapse-could-be-saved-by-British-species.html