BETHEL TWP., Miami County — A Bethel Twp. man is still seeking answers a week after hordes of his most prized honey bees began to die in 20 wooden hives kept on a friend’s Elizabeth Twp. property.

State Apiary Inspector Barb Bloetscher of the Ohio Department of Agriculture said that while pesticide poisoning is the most likely reason tens of thousands of Tony Rimkus’ “survivor” bees have died since last week, the cause or culprit may never be known.

“They don’t even know what property was treated,” Bloetscher said.

The state took samples for analysis on Friday.

Ohio law requires those wishing to apply pesticides known to be particularly toxic to honey bees to notify the owners of registered apiaries located within a half mile.

Penalties can range from a written warning to criminal prosecution, ranging from a second-degree misdemeanor to a fourth-degree felony. The maximum fine is $5,000 on first offense and $10,000 for a second offense.

If pesticides were the cause, Bloetscher said the farmer who used them may not have been aware of the law.

“I think there is just a communications gap. The farms don’t know they are supposed to alert the beekeepers,” she said.

The location of apiaries can be found through her department.

Rimkus, a former bee inspector for Miami County, said he wants to educate the public about the importance of using chemicals properly.

“The damage is done, but if I keep bees there (the Elizebeth Twp. property) will it happen again next year? Will it happen in my other bee yards?” he asked.

Those licensed to use such pesticides should be aware of the law.

“It’s on the test,” the seven-year Miami County bee inspector said.

He suspects his bees attempted to pollinate crops sprayed to fight root borers.

Rimkus, a retired furniture repairman, has 135 hives in all, including the 20 affected hives. Each of the affected hives held about 30,000 to 50,000 bees. About half of the bees in each hive were dead by mid-week. Rimkus froze some of the dead bees for possible testing soon after discovering the problem. He is still waiting to see if any of the hives survive.

Sick, dying or dead bees were still dropping from or being pushed out of hives by other bees on Friday. A hive cannot survive if its queen bee, the single female that produces all larva in the hive, was contaminated and a new queen cannot be made.

“It doesn’t look good, but I am going to take it a day at a time,” Rimkus said. “I hope my gut is wrong, but I definitely don’t have a good feeling about it.”

All but two of the 20 affected hives held “survivor bees” — honey bees bred for strong genetic traits.

For seven to eight years, Rimkus’ bees lived through Ohio’s often rough winters and thrived despite a range of mites and viruses thought responsible for the mass collapse of bee colonies around the nation.

Bloetscher estimated that fewer than 40 of Ohio’s 4,000 registered beekeepers have survivor bees.

“All his years of research are gone,” Bloetscher said of Rimkus. “He is going to have to start back having small colonies.”

Rimkus has three unaffected hives of survivor bees.

Most bee hives only survive a year to three years before they die off. Replacement costs about $80 for a packet of bees. Queen bees purchased separately cost about $20.

Denise Ellsworth, Ohio State University’s honey bee and native pollinator education program director, said honey bee poisonings are not uncommon. The bees are particularly affected by neonicotinoids, a class of insecticide used to pre-treat corn seeds. Dust from the seeds is blown from farms onto plants honey bees often pollinate. Poisoning should be reported to the department of agriculture, she said.

“It is really important to know when bee kills happen and so there is some tracking,” Ellsworth said.

Each of Rimkus’ hives produced about 75 pounds of honey sold at $3 to $4 a pound.

A beekeeper since 1997, he said his loss would be about $5,000 if the bees were standard honey bees.

“I don’t know how you put a price on eight years worth of work,” Rimkus said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2384 arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com.