500,000 Honeybees Perish in Dutch Fire Incident.

A beekeeper from the Netherlands has voiced dismay after his 10 beehives were burned down in a park in the city of Almere, causing the loss of an approximated 500,000 bees.

Harold Stringer stated that every colony housed a population of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the thought that anyone could kill them was horrific.

"It really hurts that my 10 hives have died," he told regional media.

Police in Almere, located to the east of Amsterdam, have requested witnesses after the deliberate fire on Tuesday evening in the city's scenic Beatrixpark. They posted images of the fire on social media.

The Netherlands authorities says that more than half of the nation's 360 species of bee are at threat of dying out, as the number of bees declines around the world.

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

Almost none of the insects made it through and he said that he had little faith the perpetrator would be caught.

Fellow beekeeper a local beekeeper stated on national radio that she had three hives and wanted to donate a colony.

For the beekeeper, who cared for the bees for about nine years, the fire means starting a fresh hive in the area from scratch.

But he insists he will not give up.

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