SCIENCE in your LIFE
The Buzz about Bees
By E.S.
The buzz about bees is growing louder. Beekeeping is increasing in popularity, especially among younger adults. Some are in it for the honey. Others want to provide a safe home for these animals to live.
A reason for this is the recognition that bees need to be protected. People, most animals, and many plants really need bees.
Bees play a huge role in producing our food—from fruits and vegetables to nuts, and even to the meat we eat.
Bees help plants reproduce. Plants have a male part that produces pollen and a female part that uses the pollen to make seeds, fruit, and nuts. To make more plants, pollen needs to move from the male part of a plant to the female part of a plant. Plants can’t get up and walk around, so they need some help.
This is where bees come in to help, along with wind, some other insects, and a few birds. Bees are really efficient because they spend so much time looking for food in flowers.
Inside the flowers is a sugary liquid called nectar. Bees use this as food. When a bee goes to drink it, some of the pollen near the nectar gets stuck its legs.
The bee flies off, carrying the pollen with it. It lands on another plant to drink some more nectar, and some of the pollen from the first plant rubs off onto the second plant.
The end result—more plants!
When plants can't pollinate, this can't happen.
Because bees help this process so efficiently, protecting them from problems we create helps us, too.
One big problem is that some bee habitats are in decline. This hurts bees, plants, and other animals. By protecting existing habitats and helping create new ones, we can help bees and ourselves.
Please send any questions or comments to Dr. Spitzer (spitzern@marshall.edu )
Note: Any opinions expressed in these articles are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of Dr. Spitzer, the Department of Biological Sciences, or Marshall University.