[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/bumblebee.jpg” caption=”A recent study shows that some species of bumblebee are declining in North America. Reuven Dukas, associate professor of psychology, neuroscience & behaviour, says that while we should be concerned about the decline, we shouldn’t hit the panic button just yet. Photo via flickr.com/photos/s_evenseth.”]

var addthis_config = {
data_track_clickback: true
}

A recent
studyshowing a 96 per cent decline in the numbers of four types of bumblebee in
the U.S has some panicking over the future of the important pollinator as well as the
future of our agricultural crops. But is the panic overblown?

Reuven Dukas, associate professor of psychology, neuroscience & behaviour at
McMaster, studies learning in bees and says that although the decline should be cause
for concern, it doesn't quite mean the end of our food supply.

What exactly is happening to bumblebees?

It's actually a combination of a number of things that are affecting bumblebee
populations: fungi, stress, viruses and parasites, in addition to the use of pesticides
and herbicides by humans. And it isn't just affecting bumblebees – the same factors
have contributed to a decline in the number of honeybees too.

Most people would probably say having fewer bees around is a good thing – we'll
get stung less! So what's the big deal?

Well first of all, bees won't sting you unless they are defending themselves or their nest
or have become confused, so you don't need to be quite as worried about them as you
think. But bees are incredibly important pollinators. Almost all fruits and vegetables
rely on some form of pollination, so they are absolutely essential for our food supply.
Bumblebees are especially important in pollinating tomatoes, and can fly at colder
temperatures than honeybees, making them useful in colder climates.

Should we be worried?

We should be concerned, and we should do our best to help stabilize bee populations,
but we shouldn't hit the panic button just yet. We've known about this anecdotally for
years, but we're just starting to see some concrete research. The recent study on
bumblebees identified just four species that are in decline, but we know that other
species are doing just fine. To give you some perspective, there are approximately
20,000 species of bee in the world.

What can people do to help keep bee populations healthy?

They can build bee-friendly gardens, plant lots of native flowers and probably most
importantly they should stop using herbicides and pesticides. Also, they should try
their best to just leave bees alone. If you don't bother them, they won't bother you.

href=”http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php”>Share

Stay connected

src=”http://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/images/facebook1.gif” border=”0″>
src=”http://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/images/youtube1.gif” border=”0″> href=”http://twitter.com/dailynewsatmac”> src=”http://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/images/twitter1.gif” border=”0″> href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/mcmasterdailynews”> src=”http://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/images/flickr1.gif” border=”0″>