For more than a decade, pollinator populations have been declining. Causes are varied, from loss of habitat and pesticide exposure to the spread of parasitic mites. We have a lot of insight into the plight of managed honeybees. But wild bees and other insect pollinators are also struggling, and a new publication highlights why this should be of concern.
Pollinators are essential to an array of fruit and vegetable crops, many of which provide us with foods that contain essential micro-nutrients, like vitamins A, C, and E. It’s not just about strawberries and avocados – we also need pollinators for coffee and chocolate.
An international team of thirty-seven researchers investigated more than 600 farm fields in an assessment of 41 crops. They found that wild bees have an edge on honeybees when it comes to increasing crop yields. Across the board, wild pollinators improved pollination efficiency. Compared to honeybees, they doubled the number of flowers that developed into mature fruit or seed. Honey bees produced similar results in only 14% of the systems.
In a world with an ever-increasing number of mouths to feed, we can’t afford to ignore the benefits wild pollinators provide. While wild bees, beetles, wasps, and flies responsible for this work are inconspicuous, their impact on our food resources is not. Relying on managed honeybees is not only risky, it’s inefficient.
More work needs to be done to protect wild pollinators; this will include keeping natural and semi-natural areas near farms, reducing pesticide dependence, and bringing hedgerows back to large farms.
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Web Links
Wild Pollinators Enhance Fruit Set of Crops Regardless of Honey Bee Abundance
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/339/6127/1608.abstract
Wild Pollinators Are Critical in Keeping our Picnic Baskets Full
Importance of pollinators in changing landscapes for world crops
http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/274/1608/303.full
TNC Graphic
http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/urgentissues/global-agriculture/infographic-on-bees.xml
Photo, taken on August 22, 2009, courtesy of Paul Sullivan via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY, with partial support from the Field Day Foundation.