Threat to N.B. honeybees under assessment

Honeybees have been dying or disappearing throughout North America, but provincial scientists say it appears a different problem is affecting hives in New Brunswick.

The province's agriculture department has begun surveying beekeepers to assess problems in the industry.

New Brunswick Beekeepers Association president Paul Vautour says about 80 per cent of the province's bee population died over the winter.

Vautour said the provincial government's involvement is a step toward finding a solution.

"The provincial inspector has been around taking samples of hives from across the province, and they'll be sending them away to Nova Scotia to see if they can find any diseases of the gut, or other diseases internal to the bees."

Chris Maund, a scientist with the Department of Agriculture, said New Brunswick's beehives don't seem to be suffering from the same problems facing those in the United States.

Beekeepers south of the border are reporting a condition called colony collapse disorder.

But Maund said that, despite some anecdotal evidence, there is no hard proof of the disorder in New Brunswick.

"A large part of it appears to be weather, in conjunction with poor fall conditions, which resulted in weaker than normal colonies going into the winter."

Vautour said many beekeepers in the province are part of a federal funding program, which will help offset the downturn in business this year.

Vautour is also expecting word from the province on funding to help rebuild the lost hives.