The extinction of bees is threatening human existence on this earth right now. What is the connection of the bees extinction to human habitats? Without us knowing, bees provide many benefits for humans, including a role in supporting people.
Bees are a large group of insects who live colonized, though not all of them are. There are about 20,000 species of bees in the world scattered throughout the continent, except Antarctica. One of the duties of bees that play a role in human life is to collect pollen and nectar.
Keep in mind that human life is very dependent on the pollinator species that help preserve nature such as bees, insects, bats, butterflies, and birds. The animals will pollinate and fertilize a variety of human food crops. From there humans will reap a variety of benefits in meeting the needs of their life. If these animals vanished from this earth, then human life would become quite threatened.
The role of pollinating animals in ecosystems is very important. When a male flower likes a female flower, the male flowers will invite the pollinating animals to assist in the process of breeding. The coming bees will move the pollen from male flowers to the female flower organs. From the process then produce fruits or other food sources.
Although bees are not the only pollinating animals in the ecosystem, but this animal species is the best in terms of pollination. They do need pollen to feed the bees so the pollination is their primary task. Other pollinators visited flowers only to suck honey or pollen.
In addition to serving as a pollinating animal, bees can also provide food for some bird species. If a major and deadly catastrophe strikes the bees, then all parts of the food chain will also be affected.
The reason why it is because the bees species are now threatened with extinction can affect humans as well. Some of the impacts of extinction on humans such as reduced world food supply, the threat of malnutrition, the increase of various types of diseases, which will result in greater disaster in the number of deaths in various parts of the world.
In 2016 it was reported that seven types of bees in Hawaii became the first species of bees that fall into the category of endangered animals by the United States Federal Government. The extinction is caused by several factors, namely habitat loss, forest fires, and invasion of plants by external insects such as parasitic mites called varroa mites.
The news is only reported from one country alone and the impact is enough to disturb the population there. Imagine if the bees that exist in this world really disappear, human presence may also come under threat.
The study shows that there are approximately 224 different types of food plants that exist in 156 countries in the world of vitamins and nutrients have a dependence on bees. An analysis of the world crop market also found that the role of pollinators plays a vital role for 91 human food sources.
Although the pollination process in some plants can also be done by the wind, but the diversity of human food sources will be reduced in number. Almond plants, peaches, plums, apples and cherries are some of the examples of plants pollinated depend on bees.
In other words, the presence of bees also influences human survival. The pollination process may be possible with alternatives if the bees are completely extinct, but certainly not as efficient as the bees, both in terms of yield and cost.
Humans can also pollinate the plants themselves, but the cost required to pollinate one hectare of fields using human labor can reach Rp76, 4 million – Rp.95, 4 million. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that honeybees can work on American peasants’ worth equivalent to Rp147 trillion – Rp200 trillion annually.
Another possibility if the extinction of the bee really happened, then the world at that point has been very damaged and full of poison. Therefore, we need to maintain the existence of these pollinating animals in order to keep the ecosystems in the earth to be safe. There are some ways can be done to overcome the extinction of bees for example by making a flower garden and by avoiding the use of pesticides.
