Beekeepers share why they don’t want you to raise more honey bees in Santa Barbara County

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The hills above Carpintera are buzzin' with bees.

For beekeeper Melissa Cronshaw, honey bees are a family affair.

"Here's my father, Paul Cronshaw, said Melissa Cronshaw.

“This was an apiary that my dad started back in the 80's after he had a teacher at Santa Barbara High school with an observation hive in the back of his class," said Cronshaw.

Since then, the father daughter duo have devoted their lives to the wellness of bees.

“This is a picture from 2009 and look at all those boxes there there was a lot of boxes … because back then we had more rain," said beekeeper Paul Cronshaw.

"He became obsessed … ordered his own beehives from a sears catalog and fast-forward now I take care of the same apiary," said Melissan Cronshaw.

These beekeepers monitor millions of bees 7 days a week, 365 days of the year.

"Bees are so special because they are one of the highest creatures … organizational creatures … in the planet and they all work together for the good of the colony," said Paul Cronshaw.

But in the last few years, the population of honey bees have exploded across Santa Barbara County.

And their colony is getting too big.

"The biggest problem is that we’re focusing on the wrong species of bees. everybody thinks of honeybees when we think of bees … because they are the most prominent … we use them for pollination … they give us honey," said Melissa Cronshaw.

Cronshaw noticed during the pandemic an uptick in people wanting to become bee keepers.

"Just understanding that actually becoming a beekeeper is not being a conservationist …. it’s not even very environmentally friendly nowadays … because too many honeybees is creating problems for those native bees," said Melissa Cronshaw.

Cronshaw believes the booming population is threatening the existence of the 67 other native bees long before the honey bees.

These include bumblebees, mason bees, and sweat bees, just to name a few.

Cronshaw is confident the community can improve the overall biodiversity by planting more native plants.

"The best thing to do today to actually be an environmentalist and a bee steward is to plant flowers," said Melissa Cronshaw.

Here in Santa Barbara County, several bumble bee species are currently at risk of becoming endangered.

"Such as the western bumblebee and the suckley cuckoo bumblebee … which both of those are the ones that are on the waiting list," said Melissa Cronshaw.

So if you want to help the bees,

“Don’t get a beehive don’t become a beekeeper flowers just provide resources," said Melissa Cronshaw.

Honey bees were introduced to North America in the 1600s with the arrival of Europeans.

However, many people are not aware of the 4,000 species of indigenous or native bees that called America home before honey bees arrived.

Suckley's cuckoo bumble bee is considered critically endangered, the Crotch bumble bee is endangered, and the western bumble bee is considered vulnerable.

Plus, because there are too many, living too close, honey bees are now attacking other honey bee colonies. 

Bees are an indicator species and a vital competent of the food chain.