Bees play a very important role in natures society. In this essay, I will be talking about what bees do for our environment and without them, what would happen to the world’s plants.
The most important things that bees do is pollinate flowers and plants. Pollination is required for plants to reproduce so many plants depend on bees for this purpose. “When a bee collects nectar and pollen from the flower of a plant, some pollen from the stamens—the male reproductive organ of the flower—sticks to the hairs of her body.
When she visits the next flower, some of this pollen is rubbed off onto the stigma, or tip of the pistil—the female reproductive organ of the flower. When this happens, fertilization is possible, and a fruit, carrying seeds, can develop.”- Bees Techno.comBees are the main pollinator for plants and so plants have adapted over time to become more attractive. Bees are drawn to plants wit open or flat tabular with lots of pollen and nectar. A plants color and smell also help to attract bees.Foods that require bees and their pollination include Alfalfa, Gooseberries, Grapes,Horseradish,Kale,Lettuce,Mustard,Onions,Parsley,Peaches,Pears,Plums,Pumpkins,Radishes, Rhubarb,Squash,Strawberries,Sunflowers,Sweet Potatoes,Turnip,Watermelon,Almonds,Apples,Asparagus,Beans,Beets,Blackberries,Blueberries,Brussels sprouts,Buckwheat,Cabbage,Cantaloupe,Cauliflower,Celery,Cherries,Chestnuts,Chives,Clover,Cranberries,Cucumber,Currants,Eggplant,Flax,Garlic.
Fruits and vegetable plants or trees that are visited more often by bees tend to produce foods that are larger in size. This is more noticeable in tree fruit. There are other animals and forces that pollinate than just bees such as birds, wind, and water.
Birds share the same pollinating strategy as bees. This is by visiting one flower for nectar or pollen and picking up the pollen dust from one plant and when the animal visits the next plant, the pollen falls off of the animal and gets on the other plant creating an endless cycle of pollination. Wind and water are interesting considering this is done naturally and not by an animal. For water, pollen can fall into the water and be carried to a plant down stream typically near the side of the body of water. Wind works similarly to water except the pollen can flow through the wind for longer and won’t be stopped as easily as it would in a body of water.
Other animals are able to carry pollen to simply by getting some on their fur and brushing by another plant and transfering that pollen. What if bees stopped pollinating all of the world’s crops and plants. This answer is simple. All of the crops and plants all over the world will die do to lack of pollination.
Another issue is the pollination of GM crops. GM, or genetically modified crops, are a challenge that bees face. Sandpaw.com says, “In order to eradicate cross-pollination of GM and non-crops, farmers must ensure that non-GM crops are not downwind of GM crops, as this increases the likelihood of cross-pollination occurring. Also, focus on the activity of crops during its flowering can protect non-GM crops from being affected. As it is particularly influential to oilseed and sugar beet crops, insect behaviour must be monitored by farmers as they contribute significantly to the cross-pollination of each crop.
“Another bee topic is the different kinds of bees. Some include honey bee, carpenter bee, bumble bee, apidae, and sweet bees. Most bees have the same ability to pollinate but some bees have a more fatal sting such as the african killer bee is known for killing humans because their sting is so powerful. This is due to bees having to adapt over time. Each bee obviously has their own strengths and weaknesses.In conclusion, bees have one of the biggest roles on plants and agriculture out of all of the animals and insects that there are.
They pollinate more than any other form of pollination and they have adapted over time to be able to overcome the obstacles that each of the different bees in their own habitats. So without bees, we would have no agriculture.
