The sting: Brazen thieves are carrying off bee hives

THIEVES are cashing in on the lucrative beekeeping market, with 135 hives reported stolen over the last six years.

Hundreds of thousands of bees have been taken from apiaries across England and Wales since 2011, figures show.

Certain types of queen bee can fetch up to £180, indicating that rising prices could be behind the high number of thefts.

Martin Smith, of the British Beekeepers’ Association, said the rising popularity of beekeeping, combined with amateur keepers possibly buying stolen hives, was encouraging thieves. He added: ‘A colony of bees that a few years ago might have sold for £25 can now sell for above £200.’

Police in Herefordshire, Shropshire, Worcestershire and Lincolnshire recorded the most thefts. Lincolnshire also had the highest-value theft, at £8,000. Mr Smith said it was a ‘sad fact’ that most thefts are ‘probably undertaken by beekeepers or at least those with a rudimentary knowledge of the craft’.

There are an estimated 30,000 beekeepers in England and Wales.