ハチの巣箱をＡＩが管理　イスラエルの養蜂　コロニー保護への期待も

【ベイトヘメクＡＦＰ＝時事】養蜂を手掛けているイスラエルのキブツ（農業共同体）で、最先端の人工知能（ＡＩ）システムを装備した巣箱が導入された。重要な受粉媒介者ハナバチを長生きさせるように設定されたＡＩシステムだ。（写真はイスラエル北部ガリラヤ地方にあるキブツ（農業共同体）ベイトヘメクの「ロボ巣箱」にハナバチを移す養蜂家）
　「ここには２００万匹のハナバチがいます」。イスラエル北部ガリラヤ地方にあるキブツ「ベイトヘメク」。広さ１２平方メートルのコンテナの中で、養蜂家のシュロムキ・フランキンさん（４１）はＡＦＰに語った。
　ハチに刺されないようにフェースネットを着けたフランキンさんは「ビーホーム（蜂の家）」とも呼ばれるこの巣箱について、イスラエルのスタートアップ企業が考案したもので、最大２４群のハチを飼育できると説明した。
　この巣箱は多目的ロボットの機能を備えており、ハチの監視や世話から生息環境の調整まで、あらゆることを実行できるという。
　新興企業のビーワイズは、農薬や害虫などの影響で急激な個体数減少に見舞われているハナバチの仲間を生かそうとする取り組みの中でＡＩの活用を思い付いた。

■ロボ巣箱
　ビーワイズの運営責任者を務めるネタリ・ハラリ氏は「このロボ巣箱はセンサーを備えており、巣枠の中で起きていることを把握できます」と話す。
　「人工知能（ＡＩ）のおかげで、ハチが何を必要としているかをソフトウエアが認識します」
　太陽電池で稼働するロボ巣箱は糖や水、薬剤を自動で提供する。
　問題が発生すると、アプリを通じて養蜂家にアラートが通知され、コンピューター経由で離れた場所からでも対応できる。
　ハラリ氏によると、ロボ巣箱は温度調節や害虫駆除も可能で、組み込み型の遠心分離機で蜂蜜を自動で抽出することもできる。
　「人工知能によって作られた世界初の蜂蜜です」とハラリ氏は熱く語った。
　イスラエル・ヘブライ大学のレホボトキャンパスにあるハナバチ研究センターのシャロニ・シャフィール所長によると、ビーワイズの技術は、拡大する脅威に直面しているハナバチのコロニーを守るのに役立ちそうだ。
　シャフィール氏は「問題が起きていることに養蜂家が気付くのに数か月かかることもある」が、「このロボ巣箱があれば、リアルタイムで問題に対処し、ハチの致死率を抑えることができる」と語った。
　２０１９年の研究によると、世界各地でハナバチの６種に１種が局地的な絶滅に見舞われている。その主な原因は、生息地の減少と殺虫剤の使用と考えられている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/06/27-14:25）

They function as normal hives, but apiaries built at a kibbutz in Israel's Galilee are decked out with high-tech artificial intelligence systems set to ensure longevity for these vital pollinators.
There are two million bees here, said Shlomki Frankin as he walks into a 12-square-metre container in Kibbutz Beit Haemek in northern Israel.
Dubbed Beehome, the project is the brainchild of an Israeli startup and houses up to 24 hives, explained Frankin, clad in a hat and veil to protect himself from stings.
The 41-year-old told AFP that the hives feature a multi-purpose robot that does everything from monitor the bees to adjust the habitat and provide them with care.
Startup Beewise came up with the idea in an effort to reduce mortality rates in a species that has in the past years seen sharp rates of decline due to environmental threats.
- Artificial intelligence -
The robot is equipped with sensors that allow it to know what is happening in the hive frames, said Netaly Harari, director of operations at Beewise.
Thanks to artificial intelligence, our software knows what the bees need, she explained in the workshop where the hives are assembled.
The robots can automatically dispense sugar, water and medication.
If a problem comes up, the beekeeper is alerted through an application, allowing for intervention remotely via computer, or in person if necessary.
The hives operate on solar energy, have adjustable temperatures, eliminate pests and can even extract honey automatically using an integrated centrifuge, Harari said.
By the end of May, the startup hopes to be producing its own honey for the first time -- the first honey in the world made with artificial intelligence, she enthused.
For Frankin, the robot is a tool for beekeepers, but doesn't replace them.
They save a lot of time, he continued, because they allow him to do a lot of simple things remotely.
About a hundred of these high-tech hives are already functional in Israel, with a dozen others sent to the United States.
Beewise is eyeing a foothold in the European market in two years.
Launched in 2018, the startup has 100 employees and by April had raised about $80 million to develop its exports.
- World Bee Day -
According to professor Sharoni Shafir, who heads the bee research centre at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's Rehovot campus, the technology can help protect increasingly threatened bee colonies.
Sometimes, a beekeeper takes several months to realise there is a problem, he told AFP, adding that with the robot, beekeepers can deal with the problem in real-time, reducing the bees' mortality rates.
One in every six species of bees have gone regionally extinct somewhere in the world, with the main drivers thought to be habitat loss and pesticide use, according to a 2019 study.
Shafir points in particular to the decline in fields of flowers due to construction, which has reduced the sources and diversity of food for bees.
Added to that are diseases and pests, such as the varroa destructor, a mite that has a devastating effect on honeybees, the professor added.
In Israel, between 20 and 30 percent of hives disappear every year, the entomologist said.
He noted that a significant portion of foods consumed by people are the result of cross-pollination by bees and other insects.
More than 70 percent of crops, including almost all fruits, vegetables, oilseeds, spices, coffee and cocoa are dependent on pollinators.
The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization on May 20 celebrates World Bee Day, which aims to underline the importance of preserving bee species.
Bees and other pollinators have thrived for millions of years, ensuring food security and nutrition, and maintaining biodiversity and vibrant ecosystems, FAO has said.
We depend on bees, Shafir emphasised.