Half a Million Bees Perish in Netherlands Deliberate Blaze.

A Dutch beekeeper has expressed dismay after his 10 beehives were burned down in a public garden in the central city of Almere, resulting in the death of an estimated 500,000 bees.

The beekeeper stated that each hive contained a population of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the idea that anyone could kill them was devastating.

"It is deeply painful that my ten colonies have died," he told regional media.

Law enforcement in Almere, located to the northeast of Amsterdam, have appealed for witnesses after the arson attack on Tuesday evening in the city's scenic Beatrixpark. They shared images of the fire on social media.

The Netherlands authorities reports that more than half of the nation's 360 species of bee are at threat of extinction, as the population of bees declines around the world.

Mr Stringer said that police had informed him an accelerant had been used to ignite the hives, which were placed on pallets in a forested area of the garden.

Barely any of the bees survived and he noted that he had little faith the arsonist would be apprehended.

Fellow beekeeper a local beekeeper told national radio that she had three hives and planned to give him one of them.

For the beekeeper, who looked after the bees for about nine years, the incident means starting a new colony in the park from scratch.

But he insists he will not give up.

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• A Million Bees Lost in Deliberate Hive Fire.