01.16.2020 Zoë S. (CHARLOTTESVILLE - DAVINCI) - Bees pollinate 80% of the world's plants. From April 1, 2018 - April 1, 2019 the bee population in the U.S. dropped by 40.7%. According to an article in National Geographic this is the result of climate change, urbanization, and pesticides. ‘“If we were to wipe out insects alone on this planet, the rest of life and humanity with it would mostly disappear from the land,” says American biologist Edward Osborn Wilson.
One million gardeners have come together to create a ‘global network of greenery’ that nourishes and is good for bees and other insects. In California, bees are expected to be the first pollinators protected by California’s endangered species act. A new program in Minnesota will actually pay citizens for planting anything that could be a bee’s habitat.
Scientists are encouraging people to ‘leave the dandelions alone’ this summer. Dandelions are a main food source for bees, and they depend on them for food in the early spring months when not much else is blooming.
Jane Memmot, a Bristol University Professor gives her opinion on bees. She says, “You can’t personally help tigers, whales and elephants, but you really can do something for the insects, birds, and plants that are local to you.”
Sources -
https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/1-million-gardeners-unite-for-global-network-of-pollinator-greenery/
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