Why are hundreds of thousands of honey bees dying in Lyttelton?

 A helper inspects Maguire's healthy hives prior to the hive being decimated in February. Photo:...
A helper inspects Maguire's healthy hives prior to the hive being decimated in February. Photo: Paul Maguire
Mystery surrounds why hundreds of thousands of honey bees have been dying in Lyttelton.

Seven Lyttelton beekeepers met last week to investigate what was happening to the bees that have perished in huge numbers over the past three years in February.

Local beekeepers Paul Maguire and Hannah Ewing joined forces creating the group for other beekeepers to discuss their concerns.

Maguire said the hives seem to be affected at the same time with a massive die out. But the bee numbers then bounce back.

“We want to find out what is happening so we can stop it happening again next year,” he said.

Paul Maguire.
Paul Maguire.
Maguire said it was likely almost half a million bees died in Lyttelton.

The beekeepers have several theories about what is killing the bees but have not yet found any conclusive evidence.

A local resident or Christchurch City Council could be spraying for weeds or baiting for wasps using substances toxic to bees.

It could be an accumulative or one-off type event. Or something else could be happening.

The group has decided to investigate the cost of sending some of the dead bees and collected pollen to a laboratory to hopefully come to some conclusions.

However, lab sampling can cost thousands of dollars, so the ‘Lyttelton Beeks’ group, now made up of 19 beekeepers, is considering starting a community fundraiser in the future.

Maguire, who owns 30 hives, including four in Lyttelton, said they think the issue is specific to the port town.

He explained the problem was not seen in Cass Bay nor Governors Bay, although they had talked with a beekeeper in Moncks Spur. They had seen their bees die-off at the same time for the past five years.

Maguire said: “Bees are like canaries in a coal mine. We need to realise if bees are dying, other things will be dying too.”

Dead honey bees from one of Paul Maguire’s hives. Photo: Paul Maguire ​
Dead honey bees from one of Paul Maguire’s hives. Photo: Paul Maguire ​
The group is hoping to raise further awareness about taking care of bees.

“There are weed and insect sprays out there that appear to be okay, but they contain surfactants which suffocate bees.

“Some chemicals are okay for bees individually but when you mix them together they become toxic to bees,” he said.

He also explained it is important to be aware of the times of the day for spraying.

For example, if you are spraying roses for aphids, spray in the evening once bees have retired.

The group wondered about the potential of an environmental science student focusing their thesis on this mysterious issue.

“It will be a detective job to figure out what is going wrong,”  Maguire said.