Blame pesticides, not mites, for bee deaths

Scott Dance’s article (“Honeybee losses highest in 13 years this winter, University of Maryland-led survey finds,” June 19) only tells part of the story.

In central Maryland, deaths of bee colonies peaked in 2017 to 2018, but have improved substantially this year. From 90% losses last year when most small-scale beekeepers with a few colonies were wiped out, this year 50% of our colonies have survived in good shape, with only 20% dead and 30% weak, according to preliminary results from our survey of beekeepers in central Maryland. Most beekeepers work diligently to control the Varroa mites cited in the article as the main cause of bee deaths, but last year, our bees died whether or not they were treated. This year, most colonies survived whether or not they were treated.

Jim Fraser was quoted in your article as saying, “If you control them [mites], your bees are fine.” I wish that were true, and it may be in Montgomery County, where Mr. Fraser lives, but it is not true in the Baltimore area. While it is important to control Varroa mites, they did not suddenly become less harmful this year. What changed is that Maryland’s Pollinator Protection Act banned the retail sale of several deadly neonicotinoid insecticides, effective January 1, 2018. Montgomery County passed its own ban in 2015, but its implementation has been delayed by legal challenges. Nevertheless, the publicity surrounding the ban probably caused some Montgomery County residents to stop using the products. Perhaps Mr. Fraser is benefiting from a lower pesticide load that is now effective statewide.

When our bees die, the symptoms usually reflect insecticide exposure, not Varroa damage. These mites have been present in Maryland since 1987 and they cause clear-cut symptoms, including dead and dying brood (baby bees) as part of bee parasitic mite syndrome. It takes a year or more for the damage to accumulate enough to kill a colony. I have lost many colonies over the past six years, but none have exhibited this syndrome.

When an apparently healthy colony with lots of healthy brood suddenly collapses with piles of dead bees everywhere, that is a pesticide kill. We have seen lots of these, but state bee inspectors often attribute the loss to “poor management,” which is an insult to suffering beekeepers. Perhaps if the use of neonic pesticides continues to decline, our bees can thrive once again.

Stephen McDaniel

The writer is a master beekeeper and past president of the Maryland State Beekeepers Association.