Bees Bees Bees are so much in need! Now is the time to Bee Better! We wouldn’t be able to enjoy the amount of apples, pumpkins, strawberries, blueberries, and almonds that we do without bees. Over 30% of the food and drinks we eat and drink on a daily basis depend on or benefit from a pollinator. Bees pollinate the seed that cows graze on to maintain the supply of alfalfa and clover.
Pollinator decline would have a detrimental impact on farmers and consumers alike. As lesser-quality products and lower agricultural yields would result. Furthermore, a number of vital nutrients—like vitamin E—found in food pollinated by insects are present in these foods. Not only would a world devoid of pollinators provide us fewer food options. It would also be much more difficult to obtain the nourishment we require to thrive.
Variety of Pollinators:
Among the crop pollinators are flies, butterflies, and beetles. The variety of natural pollinators is astounding. They come in more than 20,000 different species worldwide, with over 3,600 native species found in the United States alone.
Almost all continents have bee species (with exception of Antarctica), numbering about 20,000.
In addition to keeping ecosystems functioning properly and ensuring that natural places are home to a variety of plants, pollinators also aid in the production of nuts and seeds that draw in and support other animals.
The Decline In Pollinators:
Many regions of the world are experiencing a fall in pollinator numbers, which poses a threat to agricultural output and the wellbeing of natural ecosystems.
Over the last 10 years, there has been a significant increase in the number of domestic honey bee colonies lost annually in the United States; beekeepers are currently losing more than thirty percent of their hives each year.
But perhaps things are worse for native pollinators. Many of the native are not managed therefore, many native species of bees are in danger of going extinct.
Significant decreases have also been observed in the number of butterflies in the United States. For example, numbers of the famous monarch butterfly have declined by 60-74% east and west of the Rocky Mountains.
Endangering Pollinators:
Among the things threatening pollinators and our ecosystems include illnesses, pesticide use, habitat loss, alteration, and fragmentation.
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