Feb 6, 2025
Severe and Sudden Losses of Managed Honey Bees Across the Nation
As commercial beekeepers in the USA inspect their bees after winter, to transport over 90% of the nation’s managed honey bees to pollinate California almonds, they are discovering alarming colony losses. These losses are severe, broad, and may impact food security through inadequate pollination services. Survey results are still accumulating, but information gathered from 234 beekeepers found average recent losses well over 50%, with a combined financial loss of over $139M. Combined with losses during other times of year, this additional loss puts many beekeepers at a loss rate of 70%-100% over the past 12 months.
The symptoms of loss are reminiscent of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) conditions which occurred in 2007 -2008 when bees suddenly disappeared from their colonies. During recent inspections by field scientists, deceased colonies often died with ample honey stores, leaving small patches of brood, with most or all the adult bees missing. Another symptom has been the rapid dwindling of surviving colonies, often within ten days of passing health inspections.
This page serves as a central hub for
press releases, webinars, research updates, and key resources related to
2025 colony loss data as it becomes available. Project
Apis m. is committed to providing timely, science-based information to help beekeepers, growers, and stakeholders stay informed and take action.
www.projectapism.org