蜜蜂的重要性

你喜欢蜜蜂吗？除了能带来蜂蜜以外，它们作为传粉昆虫，也是生态系统中重要的一环。近来，这类毛绒绒的小动物的数量正在持续下降，这是为什么？

How do you feel about bees? Do you get irritated when they buzz around you and do you fear their mission is just to sting you? Love them or loathe them, these little insects are extremely important creatures, and without them we might starve.

Bees deserve some respect – they give us honey, and they play their part either pollinating the many vegetables and fruits we eat directly or pollinating the food for the animals that we then consume. In fact, they are the world's most important pollinators. That's not all – a study by the University of Reading in the UK, found bees and other pollinating insects have a global economic value of around £120bn ($150bn) and contribute around £690m ($850m) to the UK economy every year.

So, bees are worth protecting, and although a small number of bee species are vital for crops such as oilseed rape, apples and strawberries, experts say we should be taking care of all our bees. Researchers say conservation efforts should be aimed at a wide number of species – even those that currently contribute little to crop pollination – in order to maintain biodiversity and ensure future food security.

Unfortunately, in recent times, bee populations have been declining due to pesticides, parasites, disease and habitat loss. It's something we should be worried about because, as Gill Perkins, chief executive of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, told BBC Future website: "They provide a whole ecosystem service." The recent lockdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic seem to have given bee populations a little boost because they faced less human disturbance, traffic and polluting fumes.

Conservationists hope, going forward, people will appreciate bees more and encourage them to thrive as they reconnect with nature. Gill Perkins says, "They are beginning to realise how their mental health and wellbeing is supported by nature – particularly by bumblebees, which are so iconic and beautiful and buzzy." So, it really seems time to give bees a second chance.