Beekeepers have been losing hives nightly to the black
bears in the upper Hood River Valley.
Reports so far include losses occurring over more than
an eight-mile range during the last 10 days.
Beekeeper Bob Morgan, of The Dalles, pulled all of his
hives a day earlier than planned on Wednesday due to heavy losses. He said
he might not return because of it.
"I don’t know if I can go back to the Hood River Valley
in the future if the problem continues to be this severe," he said.
Morgan said with all the beekeepers and growers he has
talked to so far there appears to be at least 100 hives damaged. He
estimated a pallet of four hives at a net value of $1,000.
At a cost of $250 per hive, it brings reported total
damages so far up to $25,000.
The bears break into the hives for spring feeding on
honey and also larvae after winter hibernation. Morgan said in some cases,
the animals have tipped the pallets upside down and broken the boxes
apart.
Some growers have been hit twice on separate
properties. Mike McCarthy said there have been 10 hives damaged on his
land next to Trout Creek and 10 more on land he leases up near Evans
Creek.
"It doesn’t hurt us for pollination because we have had
such good pollinating weather but it hurts the beekeepers," he said.
McCarthy said that the grower farthest north he had
heard was hit was Gordon Sato, along Baseline Drive below the lava beds,
and the farthest south was the Laurances, south of the intersection of
Cooper Spur Road and Highway 35. He said it’s not just hives that bears
cause problems with.
"During the last four years, I’ve noticed the
population increasing; they used to clean pears off after harvest and now
it’s gotten to where they pick the pears before we can get to them," he
said.
Jim Donnelly reported hives on his orchards were hit
twice: on May 2 at his land south of Parkdale on Woodworth Road and again
May 6 at leased land near Cooper Spur and Culbertson roads.
Steen McNerney was also hit twice: on May 1 on Allen
Road and May 9 on Cooper Spur. In both cases, he said neighboring
orchardists were also hit with hive damage.
"The Galvez brothers that first time and last night
(Wednesday) the Routsons and Euwers were also hit," he said.
The growers and Morgan agreed the severity and
frequency is unusual. They said due to the distance and number, they
believe that more than one bear is attacking the hives.
Morgan said he has lost a hive or two each year but not
anything like this. Grower McNerney said for as many decades as he has
been farming, this year is a new experience.
"I’ve been using bees for many years and never seen it
this bad," he said. "We’ve always had bears up here but not causing this
much damage in one spring alone."
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in Salem
reported a total of only six complaints as of Thursday evening.
"It’s up to the growers to work with the beekeepers on
the bears," said Michelle Dennehy, spokesman for ODFW’s wildlife division.
She said that the department recommends first making it
as difficult as possible for bears to get into hives.
She said that includes putting up electrified fencing
around the pallets. Dennehy said the second step might go the removing the
animals but that farmers varied in their approach on the issue.
