Honey, It's Time We Save the Bees

As you are looking outside at the flowers and trees, you might see a bee buzzing by, but did you know these common creatures are endangered? According to Greenpeace, “the number of bee colonies per hectare has declined by 90 percent since 1962” (Greenpeace, 2021). This is alarming as bees are responsible for doing so many things to keep our environment running efficiently. Ironically, we common overlook them like they are any other bug. We forget to appreciate all of the things bees do for us, and we fail to see the beauty that they bring into the world.

“Bees are perfectly adapted to pollinate, helping plants grow, breed and produce food” (Friends of the Earth, 2021). Without them, we wouldn’t produce as many crops, and there wouldn’t be as much food in our markets. Bees are responsible for 80 percent of pollination worldwide, which includes the pollination of fruits, nuts, and vegetables (Greenpeace, 2021). This can assist farmers and other people that grow crops for human consumption. This natural process helps ensure that we have some of the resources that we need for our meals, and this can allow us to sustain our diets.

Bees also produce other things that help us. These items include: honey, wax, an antibiotic called propolis, and royal jelly (World Bee Day, 2018). Without these creatures, farmers wouldn’t be able to produce as many crops. We wouldn’t be able to eat honey to help with our allergies or soothe our throats when we were sick, and we couldn’t light a candle when the power went out. Without these things our lives would be a lot different than they are now.

Can you imagine not having a candle in case the power went out? What if you just wanted to fill your house with good smells? Not having modern-day conveniences like this may not cross your mind. Sometimes, it's easy to take these things for granted, but while we are using things like candles and antibiotics, the bees are working hard to make sure we can continue to do so in the future. Therefore, it is important to protect these creatures so they can do the things that they do and we can still enjoy the benefits of the products that they help make and maintain.

It is important that while we are thinking about our busy lives and all the things that we have to do that we remember to keep bees in mind. “Pesticides, droughts, habitat destruction, nutrition deficit, air pollution, and global warming [are killing these creatures]” (Greenpeace, 2021). If we don’t do something to change this, we might have another issue to deal with, the lack of food production, and with food already in short supply that would be devastating.

By finding ways to maintain habitats for these creatures, we can help keep a safe place for them to reproduce and go about their daily business. Also, when we help combat natural issues like air pollution and global warming, we can help these creatures survive. It is important to consider bees when we are going about our daily business. Paying attention to emissions that corporations may be letting off or the pesticides that we use to farm or garden can help. Also, being able to maintain a proper water supply can help these creatures survive.

Sources

Friends of the Earth. (2021). Why Do We Need Bees? Retrieved October 4, 2021, from https://friendsoftheearth.uk/nature/why-do-we-need-bees.

Greenpeace. (2021). Save the Bees. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/sustainable-agriculture/save-the-bees/.

NASS Highlights. (2019). Statistical Summary Honey Bees. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/Highlights/2019/2019_Honey_Bees_StatisticalSummary.pdf.

World Bee Day. (2018). Honey and Other Bee Products. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from https://www.worldbeeday.org/en/did-you-know/92-honey-and-other-bee-products.html.