Argumentative Essay On Honey Bees

Bees are one of the most important species on planet earth because of their contribution to the earth’s food supply and to the global food market, but they are and have been facing hardships for the past ten years. Tim McDonnell reports that each year for the past decade “[bees have] been dying off at an unprecedented rate [at] up to 30 percent per year.” Bees, and specifically honey bees, are responsible for pollinating the crops that provide some of the most nutritious foods found on the planet, but without these creatures, all those foods are in danger. According to an article published by the Natural Resources Defense Council, “cross-pollination [from bees] helps at least 30 percent of the world’s crops and 90 percent of our wild plants

This mite’s survival is dependent on honey bees, but in order for this species to survive the honey bees must die. Varroa destructor was originally only found in Asia but was introduced to North America in the 1980s and can be found in all 50 states. This mite “feed[s] on the hemolymph of adult bees and the developing brood,” (“Entomology”) or known as a group of bees. Not only does this Asian mite feed off of the honey bee, but it also “[transmits] deadly viral diseases as it feeds” (“The Varroa Mite Invasion and Its Aftermath”). As a result of its feeding and transmission of deadly viruses, the bee’s immune system is negatively impacted and can “shorten the bee’s lifespan” (“The Varroa Mite Invasion and Its Aftermath”). It is very difficult to control the effect the Varroa destructor has on wild honey bee colonies compared to colonies managed by beekeepers. Western honey bees are in even more risk because they do not have the necessary defenses to fend off or combat the Asian varroa mite because it is not native to North America. If no action is taken by either governmental intervention or human intervention the bee population will continue to decline until they become endangered or even extinct and will have a significant impact on the world’s economic future and food