BERLIN // Beekeepers in Germany have resorted to stealing each other’s hives in response to the mounting death of bee colonies in recent years.

An estimated 20 per cent of Germany’s one million managed honeybee colonies did not survive the winter. One of the main reasons is infestation by the Varroa destructor mite, a deadly parasite that has hit bee populations around the world in recent years, beekeepers say.

Gerhard Liebig, an expert on beekeeping at the University of Hohenheim, in southern Germany, said he has had 72 beehives stolen since 1993; the latest theft was in March, when two hives vanished.

“The thefts are happening because people have been losing their hives to the Varroa mite. The stealing is at its worst after high-loss winters,” said Mr Liebig, who manages 200 bee colonies at 20 locations in Stuttgart.

“I suspected I was being targeted by a repeat offender and I installed motion-sensor cameras. I caught him on camera and he turned himself in after the photos appeared in the press and people recognized him.”