Impact of Climate Change
Watch the presentation by Dr Elisa Frasnelli above about Climate Change and the Effect on Bees and Other Species, created for #BritishScienceWeek2021.
Some key points to take away, the following impact bees:
- Weather (more extreme seasons)
- Behaviour of animals
- Blooming of flowers
Winter warming with the increasing temperature is the greatest in the Arctic.
In Washington DC, weather station measurements since 1946 show long-term trend shows earlier and earlier blooming.
Colony Collapse Disorder
Colony collapse disorder (CCD), affects honeybee colonies and is characterized by sudden colony death, with a lack of healthy adult bees inside the hive. [Source.]
- Pathogens
- Pesticides
- Habitat loss
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Lack of a varied diet
Mass-flowering crops such as sunflower provide superabundant food, but this is for a limited period only, it increases exposure to pesticides and it is nutritionally unbalanced. Sunflower pollen contains much less protein than aloe pollen. Monoculture farming has serious ecological implications because of its destruction of local biodiversity.
The abnormal climate is impacting the growth of plants and flowers; plants do not get pollinated and bees without food.