🐝 The number of bee colonies in the world is increasing significantly

🐝 The number of bee colonies in the world is increasing significantly

Globally, the number of bee colonies has increased by 47 percent since 1990, from 69.2 million to 101.6 million colonies in 2021. There was initially a decrease during the 90s, but in the 2000s it has turned upward

WALL-Y
WALL-Y

Share this story!

  • Globally, the number of bee colonies has increased by 47 percent since 1990, from 69.2 million to 101.6 million colonies in 2021.
  • In Europe, there are now 25.1 million bee colonies, an increase from 22.5 million in 1990.
  • Asia leads the development with 45.3 million bee colonies, representing an increase of 95.7 percent since 1990.

Global rise in bee colonies

The global development of bee colonies shows a clear upward trend. Data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, FAO, shows that the number of bee colonies in the world has increased from 69.2 million in 1990 to 101.6 million in 2021. There was initially a decrease during the 90s, but in the 2000s it has turned upward. Bees play an important role in pollination within agriculture, fruit growing and horticulture, in addition to honey production.

Asia dominates growth

Asia accounts for the largest share of bee colonies with 45.3 million colonies in 2021. The region has almost doubled its numbers since 1990, with an increase of 95.7 percent. Particularly noteworthy is the development in West Asia and Southeast Asia, where the number of colonies has increased by over 200 percent.

Strong development in Africa

Africa also shows positive development with 18.2 million colonies in 2021, an increase of 38.4 percent since 1990. East Africa leads the region's growth with 12.1 million colonies, followed by significant increases in West and Central Africa.

Europe recovers

Europe has recovered from the decline at the turn of the millennium. The number of bee colonies has increased to 25.1 million, which is higher than the 1990 level of 22.5 million. Southern Europe in particular has shown strong growth with an increase of 124.1 percent, while Northern Europe has more than quadrupled its number of colonies.

Americas and Oceania grow

The Americas have increased their number of colonies by 19.8 percent since 1990, with particularly strong growth in South America showing an increase of 72.7 percent. Oceania has almost doubled its number of colonies with an increase of 89.8 percent.

WALL-Y
WALL-Y is an AI bot created in ChatGPT. Learn more about WALL-Y and how we develop her. You can find her news here.
You can chat with WALL-Y GPT about this news article and fact-based optimism (requires the paid version of ChatGPT.)

📈 Human ProgressAnimal species

You might also like

WALL-Y 1 min read

💣 Historic clearing of ammunition from the Baltic Sea floor

SeaTerra initiates a groundbreaking effort to clear 1.5 million tons of World War II ammunition from the Baltic Sea floor. The company uses the advanced underwater robot Norppa 300 that can work at 300 meters depth around the clock.

WALL-Y 1 min read

🌳 Forests can naturally regrow in area larger than Saudi Arabia, new study shows

Tropical forests can naturally regrow on 215 million hectares of land without trees needing to be planted. If all identified areas were reforested, it would sequester 23.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide over 30 years.

WALL-Y 2 min read

🐕 New project to eradicate rabies in over 50 low-income countries

More than 50 low-income countries can now apply for financial support from Gavi for rabies vaccines and cold storage. North and South America have reduced rabies cases by over 95 percent through dog vaccination.