BY: THE PLAID ZEBRA
There is a tiny insect that labours so tirelessly that our very lives depend on their work. According to the British Beekeepers Association a single bee colony pollinates 4,000 m² of fruit trees and 70 different types of crops. If you look at the plate of food that sits in front of you, bees have either pollenated the countless fruits and vegetables that you eat directly, or have pollinated the food for the animals that you are now consuming. Bees contribute 714 million dollars to the economy and an estimated 1/3 of food is pollination-dependent. Let us take notice of natures blue-collar workers; let us appreciate the under appreciated.
Yet honeybees are disappearing globally at an alarming rate due to pesticides, disease, parasites, and habitat loss. This problem has grown so large that scientists have coined the term Colony Collapse Disorder, which has transformed into a global epidemic, negatively distressing ecosystems in a multitude of environments. Since 2006, North American beekeepers have seen an annual loss in their colonies from 30 to 90 percent.
Why should you care? Well, according to Albert Einstein, “If the bee disappears from the surface of earth, man would have no more than four years to live.” No more bees, no more pollination…no more men.
