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  [23]Future Planet | [24]Future Planet
  Why bees are finally getting a break
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  By Isabelle Gerretsen 7th May 2020
  Lockdowns have put a number of insect-harming practices on hold,
  creating a friendlier world for wild bees - and conservationists hope
  some of these changes could be here to stay.
  W

  While people have been confined to their homes this spring, wildlife
  has faced less human disturbance, traffic and polluting fumes. In
  Israel, [28]wild boar are venturing further into the city of Haifa than
  before, while dolphins are increasingly braving the Bosphorus, the
  Turkish narrows that normally serves as a busy shipping route.

  One animal that could see a much-needed revival is the wild bee,
  scientists say. Bee populations are [29]rapidly declining around the
  world due to habitat loss, pollution and the use of pesticides, among
  other factors.

  “These creatures are vital to what we eat and what our countryside
  looks like,” says Gill Perkins, chief executive of the Bumblebee
  Conservation Trust. “They provide a whole ecosystem service.”

  You may also like:
    * [30]How air pollution exacerbates Covid-19
    * [31]Are we witnessing the death of the car?
    * [32]The best trees to reduce air pollution

  A world without bees would look very different and change our lives
  enormously. Bees are the world’s most important pollinators,
  fertilising [33]a third of the food we eat and 80% of flowering plants.
  [34]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, according to a study by the University of Reading.
  [p08cfhxl.jpg]

  Leaving verges uncut rather than strimming them back leaves more
  foraging for bees (Credit: Getty Images)

  One of the biggest environmental impacts of the global shutdown has
  been the [35]significant reduction in air pollution.

In a world with less air pollution, bees can make shorter and more profitable
‘shopping trips’, and this may help them rear more young – Mark Brown

  Less fumes from cars on the road makes it easier for bees to forage, as
  [36]air pollution substantially reduces the strength and longevity of
  floral scents, according to a 2016 study. Pollutants break down scent
  molecules emitted by plants, making it harder for bees to detect food.
  This means they often end up flying further to find food and bring it
  back to their nests. Ozone concentrations of 60 parts per billion,
  which the [37]US Environmental Protection Agency classes as “low”, was
  enough to cause chemical changes that confused bees and prevented them
  from foraging efficiently, the study found.

  “In a world with less air pollution, bees can make shorter and more
  profitable ‘shopping trips’, and this may help them rear more young,”
  says Mark Brown, professor of evolutionary ecology at Royal Holloway,
  University of London.

  Fewer cars on the roads means other benefits for bees too. The number
  of bee deaths is likely to fall as car journeys decrease during
  lockdown, Brown notes. A 2015 study by Canadian researchers estimated
  that [38]24 billion bees and wasps are killed by vehicles on roads
  across North America every year.

  And as UK councils are tightening their purse strings due to
  coronavirus, many have stopped maintaining road verges which have
  turned into lush habitats as a result. “This unexpected profusion of
  flowers may well be another benefit for bees, with the unexpected food
  they provide boosting bee populations,” Brown says.

  Ecologists in the UK have been calling on councils to allow verges to
  run wild for years, running campaigns such as [39]“Don’t mow, let it
  grow.”

  Brown suggests that councils may now be discovering both the financial
  and environmental benefits of not cutting back verges during lockdown,
  and could continue the practice once restrictions are lifted.
  [p08cfjm5.jpg]

  Pollinators bring a global economic value of around £120bn ($150bn)
  each year, but insect populations are struggling globally (Credit:
  Getty Images)

  But a break for wild bees doesn’t mean it’s a good time for honey.
  Commercial beekeepers and farmers who rely on them to pollinate their
  crops are struggling because of travel restrictions.

  Commercial beekeepers in Canada and many European countries depend
  heavily on seasonal workers and on importing queen bees from around the
  world to replenish their colonies, according to Jeff Pettis, president
  of Apimondia, the international federation of beekeepers. The UK, for
  example, gets many of its queen honey bees from Italy. Usually the bees
  are transported by plane, but since flights have been grounded they are
  being driven across the continent, says Pettis. “If beekeepers can’t
  find the labour to produce honey, the colonies will get congested,” he
  says. That means the bees split and swarm earlier to form new colonies,
  making management difficult for the beekeepers.

  This could have serious knock-on effects for arable farmers, as
  [40]commercial travelling hives are often relied upon for crop
  pollination. In the US, bees pollinate an estimated $15bn (£12.3bn) of
  crops every year, including almonds, courgettes and melons,
  [41]according to the US Department of Agriculture.

  Take the Californian almond; around [42]two million bee colonies are
  needed for California’s almond production alone. Almond trees flower in
  February and March, and by April the visiting commercial hives have
  usually been moved to other parts of the country to pollinate different
  crops. This relocation has taken longer this year as some drivers have
  been told to self-quarantine for 14 days when crossing state borders.
  “It has been a little dicey,” says Pettis.
  [p08cfj6m.jpg]

  In the US, commercial travelling bee hives are heavily relied upon to
  pollinate crops such as the Californian almond (Credit: Getty Images)

  While things could temporarily be looking up for the wild bee, travel
  restrictions have hampered conservationists’ efforts to gather data on
  how they are doing. Typically, large insect surveys are carried out by
  scientists every spring. But the UK’s Bumblebee Conservation Trust has
  suspended its BeeWalks, monthly surveys by volunteers to count the
  number of bumblebees across the country.

  “It is not an essential journey so we have asked people to not do those
  walks. We have not been able to do the data collection,” says Perkins.

People are beginning to realise how their mental health and wellbeing is
supported by nature – particularly by bumblebees - Gill Perkins

  Instead, ecologists and conservation groups have called on the wider
  public to help them gather scientific data during this time. “Citizen
  science” is vital while official surveys are suspended, according to
  ecologist Claire Carvell who runs the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme.
  Anyone can participate in the scheme by completing what is known as a
  [43]Flower-Insect Timed Count (FIT Count). This involves monitoring a
  small patch of flowers in your garden for 10 minutes, counting the
  number of insects you see and filling in an online form.

  “The survey can be done by anyone who has a patch of flowers and a few
  minutes to spare,” says Carvell, adding that the citizen science
  campaign is “really creating a buzz” this year. In April, 250 FIT
  Counts were submitted online – more than double the number received at
  the same time last year. “People are enjoying the opportunity to do
  something a bit more structured with their time,” Carvell says, adding
  that she has received data from all across the UK, covering a much
  wider area than scientists usually reach.

  So as well as giving wild bees themselves a temporary respite, bee
  specialists are hopeful that increased awareness and engagement with
  bees could be a boon for conservation. But, [44]like with all the other
  environmental changes we’re seeing now, any long-term benefits for bees
  would depend on these changes being carried forward as lockdowns lift.
  For some, like leaving verges wild, the change may not be so hard to
  maintain. For others, like keeping traffic volumes low, [45]the changes
  would need to be more systemic.

  One change that Perkins anticipates carrying forward, though, is
  [46]people’s reconnection with nature. “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,” she says. “I hope that remains after lockdown.”

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