Bay Harbour: March 10, 2021

Wednesday March 10 2021 Bay Harbour News
• By Samantha Mythen
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
for 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.
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 the 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 costs involved to
send 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.”
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.
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Beekeepers’ bid to investigate
reason for mysterious deaths
Paul
Maguire
MYSTERY:
Dead
honey bees
scattered
over the
ground
from one of
Maguire’s
hives.
PHOTOS:
PAUL
MAGUIRE ​
THRIVING HIVE: A helper inspects Maguire’s healthy
hives prior to them being decimated in February.
NEWS 5
Current
limits
negatively
impact
service
•From page 1
The current limit of
40km/h was set following the
earthquakes after the community
had requested the speed
limit be lowered from 70km/h.
The noise and vibration
caused by the trains was
emotionally affecting residents
as they could not tell whether
the sound was caused by an
approaching
train or an
earthquake.
The request
was granted
after Low
organised a
community
meeting to discuss
the noise
Lewis Low
concerns, which more than 100
residents attended.
Heissenbuttel said the current
40km/h was negatively impacting
the train service.
“The current limit means
more wear and tear on the locomotives’
engines and increased
fuel consumption because of the
need to power up, along with
greater difficulty in maintaining
traction in adverse weather conditions
and an increased chance
of stalling.”
The trains travelling through
the valley are a mixture of
loaded and empty freight trains,
including coal trains.
Twenty trains go through
Heathcote to Lyttelton Port
there and back each day.
IT’S IN OUR HANDS
Kai roto i ō tātou rikarika
#toitūWaitaha #ourCanterbury
Stepping up for the future of our region now… means asking more from all of us.
Environment Canterbury needs your input into the draft Long-Term Plan 2021-31, which outlines the proposed actions
that will help shape our region’s future. Make a submission at haveyoursay.ecan.govt.nz/LTP.