THE Kangaroo Island Beekeepers Group wants to track down all honey producers operating on the Island so that bushfire funds can be fairly distributed.
The summer's bushfires on KI destroyed as many as 1200 hives, while the loss of bushland and flowering plants has forced beekeepers to supplementary feed surviving colonies.
The SA Apiarists Association, in conjunction with the KI Beekeepers Group, raised more than $70,000 to assist all KI beekeepers in need.
"As a collective we need to decide how we can use this money to benefit the KI beekeeping community," KI group president Mark Harte said.
"However, we do not have a complete contact list for the Island's beekeepers."
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Ideas included a research and development project to benefit the local industry as a whole, he said.
Mr Harte said the summer's bushfires that burned the western half of Kangaroo Island had been devastating for the industry with an estimated 1200 hives lost.
"This is a major blow but the biggest issues we will have is maintaining the feed levels for the coming years," he said.
Seasonal dry conditions and lack of rain over late summer meant remaining flowers were dry of any nectar.
"This is another blow for the bees and making supplementary feeding a must," Mr Harte said.
"We are hoping for a very wet winter!"
The ongoing survival of bees in impacted areas depended on supplementary feeding, because bees are dependent on both pollen for protein and nectar for the carbohydrates.
"As the fires have destroyed half the surface area of the Island, the major floral sources which normally provide both of these essential requirements for the normal nutritional diet of bees are gone," Mr Harte said.
"It is now essential for beekeepers to resort to supplementary feeding of their surviving bees.
"This will be an ongoing requirement dependent on the recovery of the floral sources, which in some cases will take up to possibly four to five years, in sufficient quantities and mature enough to produce these essential dietary needs, if they do recover.
"Supplementary feeding requires the feeding of either organic sugar for those beekeepers organically certified, or just ordinary white sugar, sugar syrup, and the protein is supplemented in protein patties."
- Details: If you are interested in having a say as to how the funding is used then please send an email to president.kibeekeepers@gmail.com