Environmental: Bee Extinction
- The Ripple Effect
- Aug 23, 2020
- 4 min read
Updated: Jan 10, 2021
By Nainika Banger and Grace Kim
If bees go extinct, our lives will change drastically, probably for the worse. For the past few years, beekeepers, primarily in the U.S and Europe, have been reporting an annual loss of at least 30% of their hives. Plus, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has declared 16 species as vulnerable, 18 as endangered, and 9 as critically endangered worldwide.
Why is the population declining?
There are many reasons behind the drastic drop in population, such as climate change and parasites. Below are a few of the main causes.
Neonicotinoids: These are insecticides that are neurotoxic to bees, causing changes in behaviours that severely disrupt the process of pollination.
Habitat fragmentation: With the urbanization of many areas, areas with wildflowers and other plants are often spread far apart, restricting bees to a limited food source and uniform gene pool.
Colony Collapse Disorder: Is when the majority of adult bees suddenly disappear or do not return to the hive, leaving behind the queen and a few immature bees. This happens mostly in domesticated honeybee colonies and causes are still unclear.
Varroa Mites: Bloodsucking parasites that reproduce within a bee’s hive, spreading disease and interfering with the growth of healthy bees. Normally, bee colonies would be able to recover on their own, but with other factors threatening their recovery, the parasites can be deadly threats.
Climate Change: Bees do better in cooler temperatures, but the shifts in temperature can also cause flowers to bloom earlier, causing a mismatch in seasonal timing. This means that bees will miss the opportunity and timing to collect and feed on pollen.
What are the consequences?
While biodiversity loss is nothing new, the severity of the consequences is often underestimated. Bees are especially important, as they are pollinators of 70 of the 100 crops that produce 90% of the world’s food. Without bees, rice, wheat, and corn would become the primary components of our diet.
In addition, bees are crucial to our economy as well. In the U.S, bee pollination is estimated to be worth $15 billion to the agriculture industry. But bees further impact other industries, such as the beef and dairy industries.
If bees go extinct, we would lose many food items, such as apples, berries, chocolate (cacao), carrots, cucumbers, peaches, and more. This will force our diets to become restricted in variety and will make it difficult to eat healthily.
Bees also pollinate alfalfa, a crop used to feed farm animals such as cows. Without alfalfa, the meat and dairy industry will decline.
As bees decline, the plants they pollinate will also decline. Animals who feed on those plants will find it difficult to survive, and ecosystems will be disrupted.
What can you do?
While the threat of bee extinction is not small, there are always actions we can do in our daily lives to help!
Firstly, stay educated and informed! By learning more about what’s going on, you’ll have a better understanding of what’s going on in the world. After all, you can’t do anything to support a cause if you don’t know it exists.
Secondly, talk about it! Share your knowledge with others and help spread awareness of issues to friends and family. While it may be awkward to discuss serious issues like the bee extinction, discussions will help bring attention to it.
Some actions you can take at home!
If you have a yard, consider starting a bee garden!
Plant local flowers.
Avoid pesticides and other harmful chemicals.
Create a bee bath on your balcony or garden using a small bowl and some stones, so bees don’t drown.
Support local beekeepers and organizations!
Don’t weed your garden! Many weeds are sources of food for pollinators.
Try not to clean up your yard in the fall and leave branches and leaves which can be great shelters for queen bees
What's being done?
There are many organizations all over the world, as well as many actions being taken to preserve the bee populations.
On a national scale, many countries have taken action to minimize actions that can further damage the recovery of bee populations. Below are a few of the actions taken in recent years.
The Canadian government restricted the use of some neonicotinoids such as clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam in 2019.
Ecological farming in countries such as Denmark, Austria, Thailand, and India will help save the bees!
A 2019 study released in France found that colonies living amid organic farm fields (ecological farming) boast 37% more brood, 20% more adult bees, and 53% greater honey production.
In the US, the USDA’s NRCS started a program in 2014 that helps farmers practice conservative methods. Concerning bees, they support actions such as planting wildflowers and native grasses.
Organization Highlights:
Here are a few organizations that have taken actions to support the recovery of bees!
In Europe, an organization called Buglife works on creating B-Lines, connecting fragmented habitats to help bees and other pollinators access more wildflowers and environments.
The Pollinator Partnership is a global organization that runs various programs not just about bees, but about other pollinators as well! Some examples include supporting transitions to bee-friendly farming, as well as educating about pesticides.
The World Bee Project was founded in 2019, and strives to monitor and deliver data about bees to scientists, organizations, and farmers to help better educate and inform their actions.
While the topic of bee extinction is a scary one, many organizations are taking action. Remember that we all can make a change, and keep an eye out for ways you can support bee populations!
Resources
You can check out websites like these to learn and share informational resources and tips on how to protect the bees. A quick search online will bring you many more!
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