Climate change: why would it be a catastrophe if bees disappeared and what can you do to avoid it?

What do a cucumber, a cup of coffee and a mango have in common?

In appearance, not much. However, all three owe their existence to an insect without whose services many of the foods we are used to would not exist either: the bee.

Without them, you would have to forget about the orange juice for your breakfast, the blueberry or strawberry sweet for toast, the almonds, the apples, the mangoes, the zucchini, the tomatoes, the kiwis, the watermelons … and another endless number of foods that are part of the daily table.

These little more than a centimeter long insects have been in the news with great regularity in recent years.

First of all by the alarming decline of their populations, especially in the United States and Europe, but also thanks to a series of studies that claim their ecosystem services, among them its ability to increase the yield of crops – and therefore, of what we eat – by about 25%.

But what exactly function do they serve in nature, besides giving us honey? And why would their hypothetical extinction be a catastrophe?

Nutritious food

“The bees pollinate most of the plants that exist”, Explains to BBC Mundo Carlos Vergara, doctor in entomology and professor at the University of the Americas Puebla, in Mexico.

“All flowering plants need to be pollinated to produce seeds and survive. And, near two thirds of the diet of human beings, they come from pollinated plants ”.

It is through pollination that pollen grains are transferred from the male part of the plant to the female, or from one plant to another of the same species, resulting in the seeds that form the fruits and vegetables that we consume.

That is, putting aside staple foods such as wheat, rice or corn that are pollinated by the wind, all other micronutrient-rich foods depend on bees.

Curiosities of bees

2.000

flowers can visit a bee in one day

• 200 times per second bees flap when they fly
• 800 are the km that a bee travels in its life
• Memory: Bees can remember features in the landscape, so they know where their hives are.

“Our diet would not only be very boring, but also incomplete,” emphasizes Vergara.

In short, without pollination, food security is not at risk, but there is nutritional security is at risk.

Cascading effect

Pollination is not only crucial for the food we eat directly.

It is also vital for the reproduction of plants used for feed the cattle and other animals in the food chain, and to maintain the genetic diversity of flowering plants.

Also for plants that are used as biofuels (canola and palm oil), fibers such as cotton, plants for medicinal uses and ecosystems such as forests, which are essential to preserve water resources.

“The lack of bees would cause a cascading effect: if we don’t have seeds we would have no grass, no flowers, no fruits, or animals that feed on fruits. Bees and other pollinators play a fundamental role in the regulation of ecosystems ”, explains to BBC Mundo Carolina Starr, consultant on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) .

Deformed fruit

When a plant has not been visited by many pollinators the results are evident.

“If you see a deformed fruit, it is – usually – because the bees have visited only one side of the flower”, says Barbara Gemmill-Herren, an ecosystem services expert and former FAO advisor.

Although these fruits are edible, the producers cannot sell them and they end up in the garbage.

On the other hand, “the plant invests more resources in the flower that has been more pollinated, and this means that the fruit that grows from that flower will have a higher nutritional value”, adds the expert, “in addition to having a better flavor”.

The problem is most acute in plants that depend exclusively on bees or other pollinators, such as almonds or passion fruit.

In the case of high altitude coffee (which is grown above 900 meters), for example, which can be self-fertilized, the lack of bees reduces the quantity and quality of the beans.

In figures

• 75% of food crops depend in part on pollination
• 90% of flowering plants depend on animal pollination
• 300% is the increase in the volume of agricultural production that depends on animal pollination in the last 50 years
• 3 types of honey bees: queen, workers and drones.

“When there are insects, the amount of grains that a plant produces increases by 20%. And the quality of the grain that was pollinated with pollen from another plant and not from the same is much better ”, assures entomologist Vergara.

Threats

Bee populations have particularly suffered in Europe and North America from a phenomenon known as “Colony collapse problem”, whereby a considerable number of worker bees abruptly disappear from a hive.

The exact cause of this phenomenon is unknown but it is believed to be due to a combination of factors, including viruses and the use of pesticides.

However, there are other reasons for the reduction in bee diversity.

The biggest threat, experts agree, is loss of their natural habitat, climate change (which implies an increase in temperature, floods and droughts), and poor agricultural practices.

The advancement of cities and the reduction of forest spaces mean fewer flowers. And without flowers, the bees are left without what to eat.

“Here (in Colombia) people spray a lot because they are afraid of losing the harvest. They do not distinguish between beneficial insects and those that are harmful ”, Rodulfo Ospina-Torres, a researcher at the Laboratory of Wild Bees at the National University of Bogotá, Colombia, tells BBC Mundo, referring to pesticide use.

“Only now are passion fruit growers discovering the importance of bumblebees, which are the best pollinators for passion fruit,” he adds.

And, especially in Latin America, where the beekeeping industry is much less intense than in the US or Europe, wild bees play a crucial role in guaranteeing good harvests.

How I can help?

Much depends on government policies that favor the reduction in the use of pesticides, and promote the variety of crops (as opposed to monocultures that limit the diversity of the diet of bees), and also on the peasants who are capable to create a natural environment around your crops to attract bees.

However, there is much that you, even living in the city, can do to help them.

• Plant different flowers in your pots or in the garden (if they bloom at different times of the year, better) to offer the bees a varied and rich diet. If the diversity of bees increases in urban areas, when populations grow they can begin to migrate to agricultural areas, ”says Vergara. “And in 30 or 50 years, we would have an increase in the diversity and abundance of bees in the field.”
• Do not use chemicals and insecticides, as this can harm the bees. This is particularly harmful if you do it when the plants have already produced flowers, as the chemicals come into contact with the pollen and nectar and the bees can carry it to the hives.
• Leave wild flowers and herbs in the garden: they are good food for bees.
• Build a “bee hotel”: you can buy or create a structure with holes with wood. This will serve as a nest for solitary bees, which are the vast majority.
• Become a beekeeper: you don’t have to live in the country to raise bees. Urban beekeeping is practiced in many cities. Find yourself a local association, learn the necessary and transform beekeeping into your hobby.
• Lose their fear: the bees don’t want to attack you, because if they sting you they will die. They only do it if they feel threatened. If one lands on your body, stay calm and wait for it to go away. Do not stand near the entrance of a hive or in the path between the flowers and the hive. And learn to differentiate them from wasps, which can sting.
• Leave a plate of water in the garden or patio: You may not know it, but bees are thirsty too.