I’ve written before on this blog about the recent honey bee crisis that has been evolving over the past year or more. Bees are disappearing and biologists don’t yet know why. One thing for sure is that honey bees are very hard workers, and in our society, they don’t seem to be appreciated enough by Joe Public, or by the government. The government needs to throw some funds in the direction of all of those hard-working scientists that are trying to help out the bees, which play a cornerstone role in our agriculture. We also need to do a better job of supporting those who raise and care for bee hives, because so much really depends on it, really! If taxes are good for something, honey bees would definitely hit the A list. Read on, for a very well-written article concerning the bee crisis.

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The serious decline in bee population here and in Europe is drawing more attention, as bee keepers have managed to effectively communicate the size of the problem to a few scientists. They in turn are struggling to get those who control the purse strings in government to take this grave problem much more seriously. Most don’t really appreciate the vital role the humble honey bee plays in the very survival of humans and other animals on this planet.

• Bee Emergency

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Word is spreading on the new bee crisis affecting agricultural interests in Europe and the United States. We rely on bees to pollinate on the order of 14 billion dollars worth of crops in the US (NYT article below), not just make honey and wax, and we have no replacement if something should happen to our semi-domesticated bee population. They play an irreplaceable, yet under-monitored and under-protected role in our food chain, not to mention their pollination services across the natural world, from flower to tree blossom. Read more about it below.

New York Times Article on the Bee Crisis by MAY R. BERENBAUM

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Bees are disappearing again at alarming rates, and not necessarily due to mites. One version of the story can be found at Earthfiles where they explain the disconcerting fall-offs in bee populations in the US and Europe, and how certain countries like France and Spain have seemed to avoid the fall-offs by restricting the use of certain pesticides.

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