How many hives can we sustain in New Zealand

How many hives can we sustain in New Zealand?  How many hives is too many?

This is a slightly different viewpoint to the normal beekeeper vs beekeeper overstocking argument.  What effect do growing hive numbers in our DOC land have on the native bee and the native plant ecosystem in general?  As beekeepers, we don’t like to think of the honeybee as an invasive species.   However, it could cause the demise of some native plants which depend on the native bee to pollinate them correctly, rather than just take the nectar.  This could also result in problems for our native birds who depend on the nectar for nourishment.

An interesting thought – read on:

How many hives can we sustain in New Zealand?

See link to the latest figures from the DOC .https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/99692486/explosion-in-beehive-numbers-on-doc-land-despite-threat-to-native-species