Decline in Wild Bees Could Adversely Affect Crop Production

Decline in Wild Bee Populations Could Negatively Impact Crop Production Associate Professor Meral Kekeçoğlu stated that the decline in wild bee populations could lead to an increase in agricultural pests, which would damage plants and negatively affect crop production. Reports prepared by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) show that one-third of global food production depends on bees. Through pollination as they move between flowers, bees facilitate plant reproduction and diversity, while also contributing to the continuity of biological diversity alongside other insect species. Turkey is home to more than 2,000 bee species, with wild bees making up a significant portion—species that play a role in biological pest control in agriculture and pollination, much like honeybees. With rich biodiversity in honeybee populations, Turkey hosts 5 of the 30 honeybee subspecies found worldwide. Doç. Dr. Meral Kekeçoğlu, Director of Düzce University Beekeeping Research, Development and Application Center (DAGEM), said that wild bees, which belong to the arthropods and hymenoptera orders, are as important as honeybees in pollination, and another key role they play is consuming agricultural pests. Kekeçoğlu stated: "While honeybees are only an important vector for pollination, wild bees benefit plants by eating harmful insects. They are so important that they serve as biological control agents." Warning that climate change, global warming and agricultural pesticides are reducing wild bee populations, and that the disappearance of wild bees could lead to further proliferation of agricultural pest insects, Kekeçoğlu continued: "The increase in agricultural pest insects will also affect plants, particularly leading to the death of plants we use as food or reduced yields. The decline in wild bee populations and unconscious beekeeping will certainly cause a crisis worldwide."

Factors threatening wild bees

Kekeçoğlu emphasized the importance of the biological balance of host plants used by wild bees, climate conditions such as humidity and temperature to which they are adapted, and the population dynamics of other insects used as food sources for the sustainability of wild bees. He noted that due to global warming, the distribution of plants and flowering seasons have changed, and this situation has prevented wild bees from living in their natural habitats to which they are adapted. Emphasizing that one of the factors causing the most harm to wild bees is agricultural pesticides, and that farmers and beekeepers must work in harmony, Kekeçoğlu explained that spraying in the evening when bees are not flying can prevent harm to bees. Recommending the use of biological control methods instead of agricultural pesticides to protect both wild bees and the environment, and encouraging farmers in this direction, Kekeçoğlu clarified: "What is biological control? Using one insect against a pest, harmful insect, pathogen or nematode. Therefore, you are not using poison, you are not using any pesticide, you are conducting pest management that is environmentally conscious."

"We need to increase the number of hives and practice quality beekeeping"

In assessments of Turkey's beekeeping sector, Kekeçoğlu noted that Turkey ranks second globally in honey production and number of hives, but the truly important factor is the yield per hive. Kekeçoğlu stated: "What does it matter if there are many hives? Many hives means a need for many nectar sources. However, due to global warming and climate change, we can no longer find many nectar sources. On the contrary, our nectar sources have declined. Therefore, we need to increase the number of hives and practice quality beekeeping." Noting that to prevent bee deaths, medications used for bee diseases or maintenance must be applied in the correct dosage and manner, Kekeçoğlu also pointed out that due to uncontrolled migratory beekeeping practices, hive pests have begun appearing in geographies where they were not previously seen, and that to prevent this, migratory beekeeping in Turkey needs to be conducted more consciously.

Noting that problems in beekeeping could be reduced by fostering environmental literacy, Kekeçoğlu concluded his remarks as follows:

"In chestnut areas, there is an incredible concentration during the chestnut flowering period, or in September there is an incredible concentration in pine forests, but some areas remain empty. We need to map the vegetation, map the honey-bearing plants. We need to distribute beekeepers homogeneously depending on the season—which plants flower in which season. There should be no concentration in one location." Source