Do you know what apples, almonds, broccoli, cashews, garlic, mangoes, peaches, raspberries and tea have in common? Give up? They all depend on bees to help with their sexual reproduction.
In fact, did you know that every third bite of food that you consume depends on our buzzing buddies, the bees? The busy little gals (the workers are unfertilized females) do a lot for us by pollinating plants and flowers worldwide.
Unfortunately, they're dying by the millions and no-one knows why. It’s safe to say our world won’t be the same without them.
‘No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more... people’ is a quote often attributed to Albert Einstein, though there doesn’t seem to be any evidence that he actually said it. Not that it matters. The attribution is less important than the content.
Few years back 'The New Internationalist' dedicated it's full issue on the mystery of the disappearance of the bees. The study reveals many shocking facts.
This disappearance is a wake-up call, a signal that our modern agricultural system is in deep crisis. People rightly worry about the loss of the big showcase mammals: the polar bear, the tiger, the wolf, the elephant. But the insect world may be a better indicator of the health of our natural systems. It’s not just the bees that are in trouble. It’s us.
To read more about it click here
April 13, 2010
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