Bumblebees are larger than honeybees and, while they collect and store nectar from flowers to consume themselves, they do not convert nectar into honey like honeybees. Bumblebees are essential pollinators for many wildflowers and agricultural crops like sunflowers, cranberries, blueberries and tomatoes. Two contemporaneous papers examining bumblebee populations in the UK were recently published by […]
The number of UK butterflies threatened by extinction has risen by more than a quarter. The charity Butterfly Conservation announced its new Red List of UK butterfly species Wednesday, and found that 41 species were now threatened and nine percent were Near Threatened. “Shockingly, half of Britain’s remaining butterfly species are listed as threatened or […]
After many years of plummeting populations of migrating monarch butterflies, a WWF-Mexico survey brings good news: during the 2021-2022 overwintering period, the monarch butterfly presence observed in the forests of Mexico was 35% higher than the previous year. While the butterflies are still vulnerable and require more conservation efforts, the survey gives some hope for […]
The importance of bees as pollinators of the world’s food crops is well-known, but wasps, flies, beetles and other insects are also vital pollen conveyors. Pollination by insects is necessary for the growth of about 75 percent of the world’s food and more than 80 percent of wild plants. Crop pollination across the globe is […]
Have you observed that the number of insects landing on your car windscreen has decreased over the past decades? If so, you aren’t alone. Two conservation groups in the UK set out to test the oft-observed “windscreen phenomenon,” and the result was shocking: The number of flying insects landing on British cars fell by almost […]
This is the first week in May, when many bees in the U.S. wake up from their winter hibernation and smell the flowers. Now, you can support these essential pollinators in their search for nectar by participating in No Mow May and letting wildflowers grow on your lawn. “[W]hen we leave our weeds, or things […]
Most of a shipment of about 800 pounds of bees, or more than 5 million individual bees, that were being sent to Alaska from Sacramento, California died on a tarmac after being rerouted through Atlanta. The bees, not native to Alaska, were being sent to pollinate orchards and nurseries around the state. The bees were […]
In a balanced ecosystem, every living thing plays an important role. Take away one — trees, for instance — and things start to collapse. Trees provide habitat and food for insects, birds, mammals like koalas, reptiles and other animals, as well as shade and nutrients for the soil from fallen leaves and rotting bark, not […]
Human-raised honeybees are in trouble, and the biggest threat they face is the varroa mite. This is an eight-legged parasite that is smaller than a pinhead, Science explained. It harms bees by feeding on their fat and weakening their immune systems, and also by spreading viruses the bees are then less able to defend themselves against.
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