Wisconsin Honey Bee Colonies Decrease by 3% Compared to Last Year
Sunday, August 9th, 2020 -- 8:02 AM
(Wisconsin Ag Connection) -Wisconsin honey bee colonies totaled 16,000 as of the first of the year, a three-percent decrease compared to the same time a year earlier, according to the Wisconsin Ag Statistics Service.The annual summary noted that producers boosted their inventory by moving colonies into Wisconsin and adding colonies to a maximum of 26,000 during the first quarter of this year. Since January 2019, the third quarter of last year had the largest maximum number of colonies with 63,000.
Varroa mites were once again the main stressor for operations with at least five or more colonies during the past year. Nationally, there were 2.88 million colonies in the U.S. up eight percent from early 2019.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.