As spring approaches and we begin to spend our days by the poolside, think twice before you smash that little honey bee flying around your Coke can.
The world’s honey bee population is dying at an alarming rate. Since 2007, approximately 30 percent of all bee colonies in the United States have died every winter. The United States isn’t the only country with a terrifying decline in honey bees. In 2012, 20 percent of honey bee colonies died in Europe and 29 percent died in Canada. The percentages are twice as high as what U.S. beekeepers consider “economically tolerable.” This is unsettling and should incite fear in everyone who eats food.
The honey bees need our help.
Honey bees’ role in human survival is often overlooked. They pollinate many of the fruits and vegetables we eat on a daily basis. Of the 100 crop species that provide 90 percent of the global food supply, 71 crops are pollinated by honey bees.
With a rapidly declining pollination force, our food industry will see major changes in not only production, but quality, price and availability. Fewer bees will result in higher prices of fruits and vegetables as they become harder to obtain.
If you care about global well-being, your own health and the preservation of our Earth for generations to come, you will heed this wake up call.
Although the thought of the human population not being able to survive in our current, unstable agricultural environment is frightening, there is good news. Small, individual actions can create large-scale change for our current situation and preserve our crops for generations to come.
Grab your car keys and head down to your local Home Depot, Lowe’s or gardening supply store. Cultivating flowering plants native from your region will attract bees and provide an environment for them to thrive in. Planting things such as alfalfa and clover will also slow erosion and replenish soil nutrients that aid in growing flowering plants. Designating an area in your front or backyard for a garden will benefit both you and the honey bees. It’s easy and affordable.
Another way to ensure the safety of our helpful little honey bees is to avoid attacking them while they are moving hives. Educate yourself on the process of moving hives. Swarming is the natural process of honey bee colony reproduction. A single colony reproduces into multiple different colonies. During this process, the bees could be without a hive and find themselves grouped together on trees, play equipment, houses, etc. It is important to know that they are not dangerous and are only trying to find a new hive. A common mistake people make is spraying the swarms with chemicals to kill them. If you come across a swarm of bees, simply call your nearest honey bee farm and they will come take them to a farm for preservation.
Now is the time to take a stand for our bees. If we wait any longer, who knows what will happen to our food supply. Dying bees are not a joke, and they’re not a Twitter meme. It’s a real concern and should scare everyone. Together, we can make a difference and save the future of the honey bees and our Earth.
Casey Pimentel is an 18-year-old mass communication freshman from The Woodlands, Texas.