Bees in the city

01juni2011
Source: scientias.nl
The news about bees hasn't been very good: bee populations are swiftly declining in large areas of Europe and America. Pesticides, varroa mites and decreased flower diversity have been cited as causes.
Still, in some places bees are flourishing, showing no signs of these problems. Paris, with its 400 beehives, is becoming the world’s apiary capitol city. Bees can be found there on the roofs of apartment buildings, on balconies and in parks. Bee-keeping has become a trend – and Parisians are crazy about trends. These metropolitan bees are producing well: in an average year, approximately 50 kilos of honey per hive, and up to 80 kilos in a peak year. Out in the country annual honey yields usually tip the scales to around 30 kilos.

The question is: why should bees in Paris be doing so well? One answer is that that city hasn’t used pesticides for the past ten years; average temperatures are also higher in the city than in the country. The most important factor, though, is the flowers. A city has more flowers, and more different kinds: throughout most of the year, flowers can be seen on terraces and in gardens and parks. This is a very different from the monocultures in rural areas. The difference is reflected in the product as well, as honey from the city contains many more types of pollen (250) than its rural counterpart (20).

The bees of Paris are leaving their mark on the city. Various hotels and restaurants in Paris have small shops selling authentic city honey. And for safety’s sake, there are regulations prohibiting the placement of beehives within 25 metres of hospitals or schools. Luckily, the most common type of bee in Paris is very docile and seldom stings.