I am amazed by how worried people are about the bees. Bee fever has struck the western world in much the same way as the turmeric latte, apple cider vinegar, and coconut oil. The bees are running out, people fear, and we won't have any flowers or food left as a result. Plus they're cute and fuzzy and make honey.
 |
| Image by ArtsyBee on Pixabay |
What does it all mean?
There are approximately 20,000 known species of bee in the world. Back in 2016, seven Hawai'ian bees were put on the Federal Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants, and bee lovers shared memes like this one:
This meme has two flawed points. Firstly, there are many endangered species of bee around the world. The Hawai'ian bees were the first on the USA's endangered list. Secondly, despite the picture, the newly endangered bees were not honeybees: they were endemic Hawai'ian bees that, unlike most of Hawai'i's endemic wildlife, had previously managed to escape being listed as endangered. These bees would have rejoiced if they had known the significance of being on the list - finally they would receive federal protection, and perhaps conservation plans could be put in place to prevent their extinction.
People seem to think that honeybees and bumblebees are the only bees in the world, they are all dying out, and the world depends on them. None of this is true. Very few bees make honey. Most are solitary introverts that live in holes. Some eat rotting flesh. Most are not fuzzy. There is a world of bees out there, and you are missing out if you only have eyes for the fluffy celebrity bees.
The world does not depend on bees: it depends on pollinators. This includes flies (which many people are happy to kill), butterflies, beetles, birds, and other things that are not bees. However, the commercial crop farming world makes good use of honeybees, and without honeybees we would not have honey, beeswax, or a variety of magical-sounding ingredients that snake oil merchants can flog to people with more money than sense. Honeybees contribute to our global economy, and humans would be sad if they went extinct. However, the issue is agricultural and economical, not environmental. In fact, if honeybee populations were reduced, it might do native pollinators some good. When honeybee populations are artificially large due to captive management, they can outcompete native pollinators and spread disease.
The lesson, in short, is that conserving one particular species above all others does not really help the planet. The biological world is made up of ecosystems, in the same way that the Vincent Van Gogh Gallery consists of paintings. Species are only the equivalent of brush strokes in the gallery of life. Conserving one brush stroke on one painting is pointless if the rest of the gallery crumbles to dust. Instead, every painting must be cared for as a whole individual, and all paintings need attention. As we look after our art heritage, so we must look after ecosystems as a whole.
I certainly don't hate all bees. Despite my desire for a click-baity title, I was forced to add in the caveat "some". I hate honeybees and bumblebees, because they buzz in my face, get stuck in my hair, follow me around and sting me (I have been stung many times, and only honeybees die after stinging - other bees do not). I don't appreciate being followed by loud, vibrating insects that may suddenly get offended and attack me with acid-filled needles. But my least favourite thing about them is that, despite the hundreds of people who die from bee stings around the world every year (in the year 2000, 54 in the USA alone), people continue to think of them as cute, gentle, cuddly and wonderful, while the same people think other cool and important animals such as spiders and sharks are dangerous, disgusting, and terrible. While honeybees and bumblebees buzz around in your face and stab you with their bum knives, making honey and alternative medicine in their spare time, spiders are busy feeding songbirds, teaching us about materials chemistry, and controlling populations of vectors for one of the deadliest diseases in the world.
Perhaps what we need is a more balanced appreciation (or at least tolerance) for all the animals that share our world, and less favouritism based on economic importance and perceived cuddliness.
There are approximately 20,000 known species of bee in the world. Back in 2016, seven Hawai'ian bees were put on the Federal Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants, and bee lovers shared memes like this one:
People seem to think that honeybees and bumblebees are the only bees in the world, they are all dying out, and the world depends on them. None of this is true. Very few bees make honey. Most are solitary introverts that live in holes. Some eat rotting flesh. Most are not fuzzy. There is a world of bees out there, and you are missing out if you only have eyes for the fluffy celebrity bees.
The world does not depend on bees: it depends on pollinators. This includes flies (which many people are happy to kill), butterflies, beetles, birds, and other things that are not bees. However, the commercial crop farming world makes good use of honeybees, and without honeybees we would not have honey, beeswax, or a variety of magical-sounding ingredients that snake oil merchants can flog to people with more money than sense. Honeybees contribute to our global economy, and humans would be sad if they went extinct. However, the issue is agricultural and economical, not environmental. In fact, if honeybee populations were reduced, it might do native pollinators some good. When honeybee populations are artificially large due to captive management, they can outcompete native pollinators and spread disease.
The lesson, in short, is that conserving one particular species above all others does not really help the planet. The biological world is made up of ecosystems, in the same way that the Vincent Van Gogh Gallery consists of paintings. Species are only the equivalent of brush strokes in the gallery of life. Conserving one brush stroke on one painting is pointless if the rest of the gallery crumbles to dust. Instead, every painting must be cared for as a whole individual, and all paintings need attention. As we look after our art heritage, so we must look after ecosystems as a whole.
 |
| Conserve the forest, not just one of the species that lives there. |
I certainly don't hate all bees. Despite my desire for a click-baity title, I was forced to add in the caveat "some". I hate honeybees and bumblebees, because they buzz in my face, get stuck in my hair, follow me around and sting me (I have been stung many times, and only honeybees die after stinging - other bees do not). I don't appreciate being followed by loud, vibrating insects that may suddenly get offended and attack me with acid-filled needles. But my least favourite thing about them is that, despite the hundreds of people who die from bee stings around the world every year (in the year 2000, 54 in the USA alone), people continue to think of them as cute, gentle, cuddly and wonderful, while the same people think other cool and important animals such as spiders and sharks are dangerous, disgusting, and terrible. While honeybees and bumblebees buzz around in your face and stab you with their bum knives, making honey and alternative medicine in their spare time, spiders are busy feeding songbirds, teaching us about materials chemistry, and controlling populations of vectors for one of the deadliest diseases in the world.
 |
| I suppose it's not their fault that people are so besotted with them. And they do make delicious sticky sweet stuff. So maybe I should be a little more forgiving. Image by PollyDot on Pixabay |
Perhaps what we need is a more balanced appreciation (or at least tolerance) for all the animals that share our world, and less favouritism based on economic importance and perceived cuddliness.
Comments
Post a Comment