We need bees. With 80% of food crops relying on honey bees for pollination, it has been found that one of every three bites of food we eat is pollinated by bees. Declines in honey bee populations have caused global concern for the world’s food supply and the uncertain future that would bring.
This article from the Daily Mail takes a look at two factors that have the potential to wipe out the remaining bee populations world-wide if they happen at the same time.
Honey bees could be KILLED OFF by a deadly “one-two punch”: Pesticides and dwindling food supplies are set to wipe out the insects, scientists warn.
The honey bee could soon be killed off by a deadly 'one-two punch' unless humanity acts to save the species, new research reveals.
The insects die off at a rapid rate when exposed to a potent combination of pesticides and dwindling food supplies.
Honey bees in farmland areas around the world are threatened by both of these lethal factors, experts suggest.
When combined, pesticides and low nutrition significantly reduce the amount of sugar taken up by bees, meaning they struggle to fly and move around the hive
Declines in honey bee health have caused global concern due to the insects' critical role as a major pollinator.
The researchers, from the University of California at San Diego, studied two common 'neonicotinoid' pesticides, clothianidin and thiamethoxam, which are used worldwide to treat vegetable, fruit and grain crops.
After these pesticides are applied to crops they remain in the environment and can be found in nectar, pollen, water and soil.
The study found that when combined, the two amplified the number of bee deaths 50 per cent more than expected compared with the individual effects of either factor.
To read this article in its entirety, please visit: Honey bees could be KILLED OFF by a deadly “one-two punch”: Pesticides and dwindling food supplies are set to wipe out the insects, scientists warn.