WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — As beekeepers across the tri-state region assess the progress of their hives after a harsh winter, there’s good news all around: The honeybee die-off was less severe this year.

“The honeybee population appears to have survived the winter in better shape than a year ago,” reported Greg Hunt, professor of entomology at Purdue University. “After the brutally cold wet winter of 2013-14 in much of the U.S., observers reported one of the largest bee die-offs ever recorded, with a mortality rate of about 65 percent for Indiana alone.

“But based on my investigations and discussions with beekeepers, the estimated loss this season is at about 29 percent. It seems much better than the year before, even though it was another cold winter.”

Honeybees are essential to agriculture because they pollinate food plants such as fruits, nuts and vegetables. According to the USDA, honeybee pollination is worth about $15 billion a year in crop production. But while most entomologists agree the die-offs have dwindled, there is no guarantee of a complete turnaround in the bee population.

“The honeybee population has been declining for years, with the U.S. losing about one-third of its hives annually,” Hunt explained. “Experts estimate the number of honeybee colonies in the U.S. dropped from about 4 million in the 1970s to about 2.5 million now. The reasons for the bees’ decline aren’t entirely clear, although there are likely a number of contributing factors.”

Dr. James Tew, a retired entomologist and bee expert from The Ohio State University, continuously traverses the state, addressing beekeeping enthusiasts. He agrees there are a number of issues facing bees these days.

“The severity of the winter is not the only issue,” Tew said. “Honestly, we don’t know all of the issues, but resident diseases and pathogens can make a mild winter present with even higher mortality. It would appear that the winter kill was not quite as bad this year, but the word is not in from all areas.”

Harsh winters are not the only detriment to colonies. In the past 15 years tracheal mites and varroa mites have decimated colonies, and there was the threat of killer bees affecting honeybee hives. But nothing hurt them more than colony collapse disorder, or CCD. The latter occurs when adult worker bees disappear from their hives for no apparent reason, leaving the immature bees in the colony to starve.

“Beehives have declined since 1957, and there are many reasons for this,” Tew said. “The U.S. had about 5.7 million colonies back then. Society has changed greatly over this time.

“Bees have been more challenged by pests and diseases; herbicides have eliminated significant numbers of flowering plants from roadsides, farm fields and front lawns. No one is suggesting that we return to weedy fields and lawns of years past, but it must be noted that floral sources and diversity have declined.”

Both Hunt and Tew said beekeeping and beekeepers are on the upswing, but added the colonies are not keeping pace and enthusiasts of this hobby shouldn’t get their hopes up just because of the decline in bee die-offs this past year.

“I seriously doubt that we’ll revert back to the days of abundant wild honeybee colonies and abundant beekeepers and commercial beekeepers,” Tew said. “In this regard, beekeeping has changed to a more dedicated beekeeper who keeps smaller numbers of colonies, but keeps them more healthy.

“Times have changed and beekeeping is changing, too. At least the dark, dark days of varroa and killer bees seems to be gone for now.”