The value of pollination of crop flowers (without cultivars) is estimated at 500 billion dollars. USA annually. Due to the intensification of production of agricultural products, including the use of chemical plant protection products, the number of pollinating insects, including primarily all bees, is decreasing rapidly. The number of bumblebees also drops very fast, and only these insects pollinate some crops. To limit the sources of this problem, people should limit the development of agriculture based on industrial production of arable crops, in particular in the areas of arable crop production for livestock and it is globally 3/4 of arable land.
Instead of industrial production of agricultural products, organic farming should be developed without the use of chemical plant protection products. Pesticides should be replaced by the introduction into the production of agricultural crops more resistant to viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic diseases of cultivated plant varieties, which are created using modern biogenetic techniques.
In addition to the industrial production of agricultural produce (mainly for the purposes of maintaining livestock production, meat production), the global warming process is also contributing to the decline of insects, including pollinating insects. This is because, because many species of insects are very sensitive to changes in the temperature of the environment in which they live. In order to limit the sources of this problem, a person should proceed on a massive scale to reclaim industrial degraded areas in order to convert them to biological ecosystems similar to natural biological environments composed of many species of flora and fauna cooperating with each other.
In addition, the surface of natural habitats, natural biological ecosystems in which insects feed. It is caused by mowing meadows outside the city and grasses in the cities. Therefore, it is advisable not to mow lawns, put up insect houses, or remove rotting, rotting stumps in parks and forests. In some cities, flower meadows are planted and insecticides specially created for this purpose are placed in city parks.
According to observations of biologists, environmentalists are killed so quickly that in 100 years there will be no insects. If the pollinating insects die, then the plants will cease to produce fruit and seeds, many species of plants will disappear and there will be a serious problem with feeding mankind and many species of animals on Earth. Therefore, the problem is very serious. This is, in my opinion, the second most important problem to be solved in the 21st century, in addition to the problem of successive and faster global warming process. In my opinion, these are the most important global problems and challenges to solve numerous problems for humanity in the 21st century.
Do you agree with me on the above matter?
In the context of the above issues, I am asking you the following question:
How to protect pollinating insects from extinction?
Please reply
I invite you to the discussion
Thank you very much
Best wishes
Dear Dr. Dariusz Prokopowicz
Greetings
I read your post with great interest. I completely agree with with all issues you raised in that post.
As for your question ( How to protect pollinating insects from extinction?).
I think you were very pessimistic, since extinction of the all pollinating insects will not take place even with thousand years.
Of course will have to bother a lot about those beneficial insect, and will have to do some practical steps at various levels (country ; region, and continental levels).
We will have to bridge the gap between strategies and action plans for conservation of different creatures, and the real work on the ground.
I propose to have a forum concern with pollinators, just to encourage stakeholder including researchers like me to investigate reasons behind the pollinator extinction, and exchange knowledge, visits between scientist and research institute in order to do some practical steps for conservation of different pollinators.
regards
IMADEDDIN ALBABA
Dear Friends and Colleagues of RG,
Further disturbing data were published on the dramatic decline in the number of bees. Now, in the media there was information that about 40 percent. Bees in the US did not survive the winter of 2018-2019. Similar data is also found in many other countries. This is very disturbing. Is mankind able to solve this problem in time? Will technological development solve this problem? Apparently, a significant part of the bee population is killed not only in winter but also in other, warmer seasons. Also in the spring and summer, when large-scale spraying of crops with pesticides is used in agriculture, also used during insect feeding periods on flowers. Then many insects are poisoned and die. How to solve the problem of a drastic drop in the population of bees and other pollinating insects?
Please reply
Thank you very much
Conserve nature in all its forms-including habitats, ecosystems and its biota. The link is necessary to maintain a natural balance including survival of pollinating insets. Somehow, we have forgotten to visualise nature as a holistic component.
In some countries, attempts are made to apply new, developed nanotechnologies to build miniature artificial insects that could ask flowers if the majority of insects asking for extinction have lost their way in the near future, if organic farming is not changed. For now, however, there are no major achievements in this field. And what is your opinion on this matter?
Please have a look at this useful RG link.
Technical Report Reversing Insect Pollinator Decline
Also in Germany, a general decline of many insect species has been observed, especially in the past three decades. This does not only concern pollinators but also other classes of insects.
Also new species have been imported with cheap plants for the German market, especially from Asia, where the varroa mite seems to originate from that is decimating bee hives all over Europe. And nopt only the varroa mite has been imported but many other bugs endangering local flora and Fauna, for example the Asian lady bug or Asian members of the long-horned beetle family. An aspect of globalisation that is not too popular yet.
On the other hand, some insects thrive in the new conditions that can be attributed to global climate changes. In the past two yeras, procession moth has invaded from the mediterranean are. And due to two dry and hot summers in succession, there is a huge problem with bark beetle damaging the weakened forests.
There is however no doubt that the amount of specialized wild bees depending on certain plants and environments has dropped dramatically. Due to ecological campaigns, awareness of this problem is hightened with the general population. Many organizations provide advice and even free-of-charge seed bombs to create bee-friendly areas. People have become interested in the wild bees and want to help them. Honey bees have also become a favoured animal. Myself being a bee keeper, I can confirm that the Cologne beekeeper association never had as many members before, more than 500, in a town of about 1 million people. Of course, the imported varroa mite has significently damaged many honey bee hives in the last decades, but using formic acid after harvesting the honey in late summer and oxalic acid treatment of the winter bees in december is a good prevention to save most bee colonies. The varroa investation of wild colonial bees such as bumble bees still is not well researched and might possibly endanger some of these species.
With so many honey beehives, some ongoing research is also conducted on the influence and possible competition between honey bee colonies and wild bees.
Beekeepers are asked to send in honey specimen for pollen anaylsis to see if and for which plants there might be competition. There is some discussion that there might come a new Cologne Legislation that only a certain amount of private bee hives is allowed in the vicinity of natural reserves of which there exist several around the town.
Since flowers produce less or no nectar in very dry conditions, especially in late summer, hungry wasps have also become a danger to bee colonies and very probably to wild bees as well.
Still, it is my believe that honey bees especially in larger towns are not as endangered as their relatives in rural areas. Huge monocultures, for example of rape seed, provide a lot of food while flowering. After that, there is no sufficient food for raising the offspring. One solution that is becoming more and more popular and was even decided by a referendum for Bavaria, is that land farmers have to leave a strip of land on the edges of their field and sow wild flowers there that are also not treated by insecticides. This will not only provide food for pollinating insects but also create corridors for other specified and possibly endangered insects to migrate between places.
Protect from toxins...save habitats... Ingram, M., Nabhan, G., & Buchmann, S. L. (1996). Our forgotten pollinators: Protecting the birds and bees. Global Pesticide Campaigner, 6(4), 1-12.
Minimize use of chemicals n pesticides... Johansen, C. A., & Mayer, D. F. (1990). Pollinator protection: a bee & pesticide handbook. Wicwas Press.
Global awareness...The Nagoya Protocol (2010) demonstrated that Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEA) are still achievable. Pollination services are essential for biodiversity, agriculture, ecosystem services and human wellbeing ... Christmann, S. (2019). Under which conditions would a wide support be likely for a Multilateral Environmental Agreement for pollinator protection?. Environmental science & policy, 91, 1-5.
Policies n laws... Katz, R. D. (2011). Who Speaks For The Bees? Narratives of Pollinator Protection in Public Policy. Narratives of Pollinator Protection in Public Policy.
Campaigns... … We report the results of a task force of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) that examined potential effects of vector management practices on pollinators, and how these programs could be adjusted to minimize negative effects on pollinating species … Ginsberg, H. S., Bargar, T. A., Hladik, M. L., & Lubelczyk, C. (2017). Management of arthropod pathogen vectors in North America: minimizing adverse effects on pollinators. Journal of medical entomology, 54(6), 1463-1475.
conservation and sustainable use of pollinators - Convention ...
📷www.cbd.int › doc › cop-14-wg-02-crp-07-en
PDFNov 29, 2018 - practical actions to reduce and prevent pollinator decline; ... bees, and other insects, such as flies, butterflies and beetles, as well as vertebrates, such as bats, birds ... conservation of rare and endangered pollinator species
Dear Mohammed Saleh Alajmi,
Thank you for your response. Thank you very much for participating in this discussion and providing inspiring and informative answers to the above question: How to protect pollinating insects from extinction? Best wishes,
Dariusz Prokopowicz
Dear Abhijit Mitra, Thank you for the important material sent regarding the issue: conservation and sustainable use of pollinators - Convention. You added some very interesting information to our discussion. Thank you very much for your valuable contribution to our discussions and I invite you to continue our deliberations on this important and interesting issue.
Best regards,
Dariusz Prokopowicz
Dear Colleagues and Friends from RG, The scale of insect extinction in the last few decades is huge and very worrying. Since the 1970s, about 70 species of wild vertebrate animals and about 80 percent have become extinct. invertebrates (mainly insects). Currently, only 20 percent are left. insect species compared to the state from several dozen years ago.
Best regards,
Dariusz Prokopowicz
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