What can we do to protect our bees?

By Maria Angella Fortich Fraija

“If bees disappear from the planet, we would only have 4 years to live”- Albert Einstein

It is no secret to anyone that bees are one of the animals of the animal kingdom that are essential for the production of our daily food and the care of ecosystems in their flora and fauna.

One of the most repetitive things is to think of honey bees as honey producers, however, they only represent a small part of the beekeeping population.

What do bees contribute to our ecosystems?

Its role is key to the pollination process, without pollinators more than a third of the collection of our food would disappear , also, the part of the food forage of the animals that are used for food consumption would disintegrate .

Bees use pollen and nectar from flowers to make honey or feed themselves, so every time they eat they transfer seeds from one place to another. This iscalled symbiotic dependence, the activities of bees help floral growth and exchange receive what they need to survive.

The cross-pollination process has a gigantic impact on biodiversity , in fact, there are studies that state that more than double the food we consume daily is the product of bee pollination.

Among the multitudes of species, solitary bees are essential because they collect pollen from specific plants, they are usually the rarest and wildest. In other words, in the most exotic areas the survival of this type of flora depends on bees.

Governments that should do...

-   Apply strategic measures from a circular economy to promote change towards sustainability.

-   Listen and implement the standards of international organizations in the care of animals such as bees.

-   Promote the participation and care of rural and indigenous communities in the protection of ecosystems.

What can we do to take care of our bees?

-   Buy organic honey from local farmers.

-   Protect the wild bee colonies around your area.

-   If you grow products, try to make it in a sustainable agricultural process.

-   Help care for forest ecosystems.

-   If you have a beehive or live near green areas, you can help the bees with some clean water for the bees to drink and not get stuck in the pollination process.

-   People who work in agriculture should leave a specific area as a nature reserve.

-   If you live in green areas, try to create plant barriers so that bees can develop in the same area.

-   Reduce the use of pesticides.

Some fun facts about bees

-   Around the world there are about 20,000 species of bees.

-   The queen bee lives for 5 to 6 years and lays about 1,800 eggs a day.

-   When the queen dies, the female bees choose young that are less than three days old and give them food to strengthen them to become the next queen bee.

-   When bees sting they die because with the sting they leave part of their digestive tract and muscles.

-   Bees only sting when they feel threatened.

Bees are ecological detectors for the hairs that surround their bodies, since they capture toxic substances that exist in more populations and less care is given to them, the more food problems we will have accompanied by less fertile lands in agricultural production.

So, are you going to help us take care of our bees?