My AP Biology Thoughts  Unit 8 Ecology EPISODE TITLE: Conservation of BeesWelcome to My AP Biology Thoughts podcast, my name is Alex, here with Raelynn and Samiyah and we are your hosts for today’s episode, coming from Unit 8 - our Ecology unit. Today we will be discussing bee conservation. Why are bees important to the environment?According to the US Department of Agriculture: “One out of every three bites of food in the United States depends on honey bees and other pollinators. Honey bees pollinate $15 billion worth of crops each year, including more than 130 fruits and vegetables. Managed honey bees are important to American agriculture because they pollinate a wide variety of crops, contributing to food diversity, security and profitability.”Pollinators - support plant populationsFood crops as well as wild plants Why are bee populations declining? “Declines in bumble bee species in the past 60 years are well documented in Europe, where they are driven primarily by habitat loss and declines in floral abundance and diversity resulting from agricultural intensification.” (According to researchers from the University of Stirling)loss of habitats because of farming + urbanizationHabitat fragmentation can impact surviving populations through genetic isolation (which causes inbreeding and makes population less genetically diverse, making them more susceptible to diseases)University of London (an issue of Apidologie): habitat loss is the “most universal and high impact factor driving bee declines.” https://www.ehn.org/monoculture-farming-is-not-good-for-the-bees-study-2639154525.html  https://abcnews.go.com/International/monoculture-farming-modern-day-agriculture-killing-bees-scientists/story?id=80536659  Climate ChangeUniversity of London (an issue of Apidologie): Change in temperature and weather patterns due to climate change can significantly impact bee populationsAdditionally, loss of habitat due to rising sea levels can also cause negative impacts statsUniversity of Maryland: October 2018 - April 2019: