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<DIV><STRONG><SPAN class=articleTitle><FONT size=2>Bee shortage worsening with
expanding almond plantings</FONT></SPAN></STRONG></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>By Heather Hackings; 1/29/06</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>Full article in <EM>Chico Enterprise Record</EM>, at:
</FONT><A href="http://www.chicoer.com/local_news/ci_3449001"><FONT
size=2>http://www.chicoer.com/local_news/ci_3449001</FONT></A><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>It's easy to take a buzzing insect for granted, but for the
California almond industry, those fuzzy, busy bees are vital to a good nut
harvest. </FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>In the past few years the price to rent bees has sprung up from
$55 a hive two years ago to $125-$150 this year. </FONT><FONT size=2>Last year
one box of bees for almond pollination rented for about $85 a colony. Each acre
of almond requires about two hives, while more mature acreage might require
three hives per acre. </FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>Almond pollination is a scramble for providers of bees because
almonds are among the earliest to bloom — February and March — and the
California almond bloom requires about 1.5 million colonies. That's two-thirds
of the bees in the United States. </FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>Because almonds are a lucrative crop right now, more acreage has
been planted, a trend expected to continue. This will mean more pressure to get
enough bees as time goes on. </FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>Almond and walnut grower Dan Cummings is chairman of the Almond
Board's honey bee task force. </FONT><FONT size=2>Cummings said that the current
problem isn't that there aren't enough hives. Rather, the hives that are rented
out are weak. </FONT><FONT size=2>Whereas a normal, healthy hive might have 8
frames, where bees build their honeycomb and raise larvae, many of the hives
going into field have only 4 frames. </FONT><FONT size=2>A hive with half as
many bees will be less than half as productive at pollination than a full hive.
</FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>Cummings, who is part owner of a beekeeping business, said in
the past bees made up about 8 percent of his almond cultivation costs. That
figure has jumped to about 22 percent this year. </FONT>
<P><FONT size=2>To meet demands, bees are being shipped from all over the
country, places like the Dakotas and Florida. </FONT><FONT size=2>To battle the
bee shortage problem, Cummings said the industry is working to open up the
borders to Canada, to allow Canadian bees in for pollination. </FONT><FONT
size=2>Some growers also buy packaged bees from Australia, but these tend to
have about 31/2 frames per hive, and Cummings said he doesn't think they do that
well for pollination the first year.</FONT></P></DIV><SPAN class=articleByline>
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<DIV><FONT
size=1>______________________________________________________</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2><STRONG>The Xerces Society for Invertebrate
Conservation</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>
<DIV><FONT size=1>Protecting wildlife through science-based advocacy,
</FONT><FONT size=1>education, </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>and conservation projects since 1971. To join the Society,
make a </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>contribution</FONT><FONT size=1>, </FONT><FONT size=1>or read
about our work, please visit </FONT><FONT size=1><A
href="http://www.xerces.org/">www.xerces.org</A>.</FONT></DIV></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>Matthew Shepherd</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>Director, Pollinator Conservation Program</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>4828 SE Hawthorne Boulevard, Portland, OR 97215,
USA</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=1>Tel: 503-232 6639 Fax: 503-233 6794</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV><FONT size=2><FONT
size=1>______________________________________________________</FONT></DIV>
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