[Pollinator] for discussion: should honeybees be allowed into conservation/protected areas?

[Victoria MacPhail]

I am interested in the members of this list's responses to the question,
"should honeybee colonies be allowed in conservation/protected areas"?
I.e. While honeybees can certainly fly from their colonies on private land
into a conservation area, should beekeepers be allowed to place their
colonies directly into the conservation area?

A few of my initial thoughts:
against
- honeybees are non-native; generally we try to avoid introducing
non-native species into conservation areas
- honeybees may out-compete native bees/pollinators, thus they may
negatively affecting the native/local pollinators and the native/local
plants seed-set
- introduced species (incl. honeybees) may potentially spread diseases

for
- honeybees may already be present in the conservation area if there are
beekeepers with hives nearby
- beekeepers would be able to have a pesticide-free and undisturbed
location for their bees
- if near a public trail/info centre, could use them as an opportunity for
educating the public about all pollinators


Any other thoughts/discussion?

Victoria MacPhail
Guelph, Ontario
vmacphail at gmail.com
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