The Honeybee Crisis

DONE BY HASHEM ALGHAFRI

CLASS: 9A
ID: 49996

To many people, a honeybee is an irritating insect with a powerful

sting. The honeybee, however, is much more than just another insect.
The honeybee is arguably the most crucial aspect of crop development.
With honeybee pollination responsible for roughly 90% of our food
crops, our food system, agricultural development, and diet are all
dependent on the work and well-being of these buzzing insects.

Unfortunately, there has been a significant decline in honeybee

population since 2006, which has gotten gradually worse due to colony
collapse disorder. The first documented increase in CCD was in
November 2006 in Florida. By February 2007, several states had begun
reporting significant CCD losses ranging from 30% to 90%. A little more
than a half-decade later, in 2012, the focus on CCD has grown
significantly, with more research being conducted as the condition
worsens. According to research, the main cause of CCD is the use of
pesticides on our food crops.

Bee populations have been declining for over a decade. In 2016, the
United States lost 44 percent of its honeybee colonies, a significant
increase from the previous year. The threat these bees face is
exacerbated by habitat loss, the use of pesticides, climate change, and
global warming.
Pesticides are sprayed on crops in the United States on a daily basis.
They were initially used in an uncontrollable manner, with planes flying
over large fields simply dumping these chemicals onto crops. This
method is still used today, but it is extremely inefficient. Pesticides are
typically applied to crops via spraying. Pesticides are applied to the
crop's leaves and stem, causing the pest to feed on it and die. However,
in 2003, a more efficient and effective method of pest control was
developed. These pesticides are referred to as systemic pesticides.
Systemic pesticide use is accomplished by either feeding the pesticides
into the irrigation system, where the plant absorbs the water and grows
strong with the pesticide as an almost inseparable part of them.

Bees are vital to humanity and the environment because they provide
the most efficient method of pollinating plants. They are especially
valuable because they pollinate our crops for free. This paper will look
at how modern agriculture has contributed to the phenomenon known
as Colony Collapse Disorder. We will examine how this issue will affect
the economy of Washington State and beyond. Honeybee colonies
have collapsed as a result of pesticide use on monocultural agriculture.

Because monocultures are so susceptible to disease and pests, many

farmers use pesticides to ensure crop health and growth. However,
these pesticides contain a variety of hazardous chemicals that are
harmful to both humans and insects, including bees. Pesticides were
originally used in chemical warfare. During WWI, German scientists
developed these chemicals, which were used to kill their adversaries.
After the war, these chemists needed a job that utilized the skills they
had already acquired. This is how pesticides were created. The potency
of these poisonous chemicals and gases was reduced to make them
safe to consume in small doses. In small amounts, salt and sugar are
not harmful to the body, but everyone knows they are bad for you. So,
isn’t it ironic that the same chemicals that we use on our food today
were used to kill people about a century ago?

Climate change is a major contributor to pollinator population decline.

The changing weather patterns and global warming are altering the
synchrony between flowering plants and their pollinators, causing
nutritional stress. Temperature extremes, droughts, and floods are
disrupting pollinator native ranges, rendering ecosystems unsuitable for
the processes required to sustain populations, such as overwinter
hibernation, spring nest establishment, and reproduction.

Without bees, fresh produce availability and diversity would plummet,

and human nutrition would almost definitely suffer. We may also lose
all bee-pollinated plants, as well as the animals that eat those plants,
and so on up the food chain. That means a world without bees may
struggle to feed the planet's 7 billion people. Our supermarkets would
have half the number of fruits and vegetables. If all of the world's bees
died, the effects would be felt throughout ecosystems. Many plants,
such as many bee orchids, are pollinated solely by specific bees and
would become extinct if humans did not intervene. This would change
the composition of their habitats and the food webs they are a part of,
likely resulting in more extinctions or declines of dependent organisms.
Other plants may use a variety of pollinators, but bees pollinate most of
them. They would set fewer seeds and have lower reproductive success
if bees were not present. This, too, would have an impact on
ecosystems. Aside from plants, many animals, such as the lovely bee-
eater birds, would lose their prey in the event of a die-off, affecting
natural systems and food webs.

Without bees, fresh produce availability and variety would decline, and human
nutrition would almost certainly suffer. We may also lose all bee-pollinated
plants, as well as the animals that eat them, and so on up the food chain. That
means that without bees, the world's 7 billion people may struggle to survive.
Half as much fruit and vegetables would be available in our supermarkets.

Pesticides in crops and certain blood-sucking parasites that only reproduce in bee
colonies are causing bees to disappear at an alarming rate. The extinction of bees
would, in fact, spell the end of humanity. Humans would not exist if bees did not
exist.
 MLA Citations

“Factors and Recommendations of the Global Decline of Honeybee Populations.” Factors and
Recommendations of the Global Decline of Honeybee Populations, www.ukessays.com,
https://www.ukessays.com/essays/environmental-studies/factors-and-recommendations-of-the-global-
decline-of-honeybee-populations.php. Accessed 23 May 2022.

“Are Bees Endangered in 2022? At-Risk Species and What’s Causing a Decline.” Brightly, brightly.eco, 19
Jan. 2022, https://brightly.eco/are-bees-endangered/.

“What Would Happen If Bees Died Out?” The Independent, www.independent.co.uk, 20 May 2022,
https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/world-bee-day-2022-uk-extinct-b2083535.html.

“Bumblebees Are Going Extinct in a Time of ‘Climate Chaos.’” Animals, www.nationalgeographic.com, 6

Feb. 2020, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/bumblebees-going-extinct-climate-
change-pesticides.