A New Approach to Inform Restoration and Management Decisions for Sustainable Apiculture

Abstract

Habitat loss has reduced the available resources for apiarists and is a key driver of poor colony health, colony loss, and reduced honey yields. The biggest challenge for apiarists in the future will be meeting increasing demands for pollination services, honey, and other bee products with limited resources. Targeted landscape restoration focusing on high-value or high-yielding forage could ensure adequate floral resources are available to sustain the growing industry. Tools are currently needed to evaluate the likely productivity of potential sites for restoration and inform decisions about plant selections and arrangements and hive stocking rates, movements, and placements. We propose a new approach for designing sites for apiculture, centred on a model of honey production that predicts how changes to plant and hive decisions affect the resource supply, potential for bees to collect resources, consumption of resources by the colonies, and subsequently, amount of honey that may be produced. The proposed model is discussed with reference to existing models, and data input requirements are discussed with reference to an Australian case study area. We conclude that no existing model exactly meets the requirements of our proposed approach, but components of several existing models could be combined to achieve these needs.

Climate change impacts, adaptation options and opportunities for investment in agro-pastoral value chains in arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya

“…The pathogens have unique haplotypes with different levels of pathogenicity, and bees are more susceptible to numerous haplotypes due to climate change. Similarly, climate-related bee migration exposes them to previously unknown diseases (Picknoll et al, 2021).…”

Market value chain of honey production in Northern Ethiopia

“…Such practices also align with the conceptual foundations of transforming rural smallholder farming towards the practices of the emerging circular rural economy. Studies by Picknoll et al (2021) and Gebru et al (2016) highlight the relevance of sustainable apiculture and environmental restoration. In this regard, the arid areas of Northern Ethiopia hold potential for honey farming (beekeeping) as an emerging and important income-generating, land-restoration, and household welfare-improving agricultural activity.…”

Beekeeping promotes the traditional home-garden conservation in Ethiopia

“…Beekeeping in Africa can preserve nature, provide food security through pollination, and maximize organic bee products. Beekeeping landscapes consist of adequate floral resources designed to favor sustainable beekeeping, and at the same time support biodiversity enhancement (Picknoll et al, 2021).…”