BIOL 1050 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Insecticide, Fungicide, Trachea
30 Sep 2016
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1/3 of american crops are dependent on honey bees for pollination. Depends on insects for pollination and fruit set: female blossoms usually need multiple visitations to achieve adequate pollination. Native pollinators may be sufficient for small plantings. Honey bee colonies: often need one colony per hectare at flowering. Without bees, people would be forced to hand pollinate the plants. California almonds require over half of the american bee population to pollinate them, cross pollination by bees is required. 3 000 registered bee keepers, 100 000 colonies/ hives (600 000 in canada) Stores of pollen and honey used for over-winter survival. Hives have eggs, larvae, but few to no worker bees. Reduced habitat and poor nutrition: food supply (lack of flowers) Food islands almond flowers, flower from late feb to early march, bees are trucked in. Monocultures not requiring bees take up a large percentage of agriculture land.
