Bees pollinate about 80% of wild plants and 84% of human grown crops in terrestrial ecosystems (Brown, 2009). The ecosystem service of pollination has the economic value in the agricultural industry worth $1.7 billion (Brown, 2009). However, global honey bee populations are in decline (Potts, 2010). With the given projections for human population growth to reach around 9 billion by the year 2050, the importance of bees to human survival is vital (Brown, 2009). The US Fish and Wildlife Service has listed over 50 pollinator species as endangered, and in the last half decade alone, wild honeybee populations dropped by over 30%, and nearly one third of all US honeybees have died due to a phenomena called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) (Hagopian,
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There are many factors that are speculated to contribute to CCD, such as pesticide use, pathogens, climate change, and bee habitat degradation (Potts, 2010). However, because all of these factors are dependent and interact with one another, it is hard to pinpoint which has more of a negative influence over the other (Potts, 2010).
• Pesticide use: Pesticides are deadly to bees (plants.usda.gov, 2006). In a 2012 experiment, three generations of honey bees were exposed to a common and widely used pesticide called “Imidacloprid” (Pettis, 2012). The bees were also introduced to a gut parasite called Nosema, which is a pathogen to the Honeybee (Pettis, 2012). It was shown that Nosema infections increased in the hives that were being treated with pesticide compared to the control hive (Pettis, 2012). It was concluded that the interactions between pesticides and pathogens could be a major contributor to the declination of bee populations (Pettis, …show more content…
Climate change can also affect the spread of pathogens, such as Nosema ceranae (Navajas, 2008). There is a projected general decline of honey bees due to impacts from climate change (Potts, 2010). Such impacts of climate change occur at all organismal levels, such as the individual level (such as changing the temporal activity for bees (Stone, 1989)), to population levels (such as evolutionary changes in the honey bee overtime, (Hegland et al., 2009)).
• Bee habitat degradation: Habitat degradation affect bees primarily by the loss of flowering species and nesting resources (Potts, 2010). Pesticides used on plants are directly lethal to the bees, while herbicides and fertilizers indirectly harm bees by reducing the amount of flower resources that are available (Brittain et al., 2010). Plant biodiversity has also declined due to climate change, which in turn corresponds to bee population decline (Potts,
There are many factors that are speculated to contribute to CCD, such as pesticide use, pathogens, climate change, and bee habitat degradation (Potts, 2010). However, because all of these factors are dependent and interact with one another, it is hard to pinpoint which has more of a negative influence over the other (Potts, 2010).
• Pesticide use: Pesticides are deadly to bees (plants.usda.gov, 2006). In a 2012 experiment, three generations of honey bees were exposed to a common and widely used pesticide called “Imidacloprid” (Pettis, 2012). The bees were also introduced to a gut parasite called Nosema, which is a pathogen to the Honeybee (Pettis, 2012). It was shown that Nosema infections increased in the hives that were being treated with pesticide compared to the control hive (Pettis, 2012). It was concluded that the interactions between pesticides and pathogens could be a major contributor to the declination of bee populations (Pettis, …show more content…
Climate change can also affect the spread of pathogens, such as Nosema ceranae (Navajas, 2008). There is a projected general decline of honey bees due to impacts from climate change (Potts, 2010). Such impacts of climate change occur at all organismal levels, such as the individual level (such as changing the temporal activity for bees (Stone, 1989)), to population levels (such as evolutionary changes in the honey bee overtime, (Hegland et al., 2009)).
• Bee habitat degradation: Habitat degradation affect bees primarily by the loss of flowering species and nesting resources (Potts, 2010). Pesticides used on plants are directly lethal to the bees, while herbicides and fertilizers indirectly harm bees by reducing the amount of flower resources that are available (Brittain et al., 2010). Plant biodiversity has also declined due to climate change, which in turn corresponds to bee population decline (Potts,