Starting in late 2006, commercial migratory beekeepers along the East Coast of the United States began reporting sharp declines in their honey bee colonies. Because of the severity and unusual circumstances of these colony declines, scientists named this phenomenon colony collapse disorder (CCD). Reports indicate that beekeepers in most states have been affected. Overall, the number of managed honey bee colonies dropped an estimated 35.8% and 31.8% in the winters of 2007/2008 and 2006/2007, respectively. Preliminary loss estimates for the 2008/2009 winter are reported at 28.6%. To date, the precise reasons for colony losses are not yet known.
Prizm Share
CRS Report for Congress
Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress
Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder
Renée Johnson
Specialist in Agricultural Policy
January 7, 2010
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RL33938
Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder
Congressional Research Service
Summary
Starting in late 2006, commercial migratory beekeepers along the East Coast of the United States
began reporting sharp declines in their honey bee colonies. Because of the severity and unusual
circumstances of these colony declines, scientists named this phenomenon colony collapse
disorder (CCD). Reports indicate that beekeepers in most states have been affected. Overall, the
number of managed honey bee colonies dropped an estimated 35.8% and 31.8% in the winters
of 2007/2008 and 2006/2007, respectively. Preliminary loss estimates for the 2008/2009
winter are reported at 28.6%. To date, the precise reasons for colony losses are not yet known.
Honey bees are the most economically valuable pollinators of agricultural crops worldwide.
Scientists at universities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) frequently assert that
bee pollination is involved in about one-third of the U.S. diet, and contributes to the production of
a wide range of fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, forage crops, some field crops, and other specialty
crops. The monetary value of honey bees as commercial pollinators in the United States is
estimated at about $15-$20 billion annually.
Honey bee colony losses are not uncommon. However, losses in recent years differ from past
situations in that colony losses are occurring mostly because bees are failing to return to the hive
(which is largely uncharacteristic of bee behavior); bee colony losses have been rapid; colony
losses are occurring in large numbers; and the reason(s) for these losses remains largely unknown.
Based on the available research over the past few years on the numerous possible causes of CCD,
USDA concluded in its 2007-2008 progress repor