The insect world is worrisomely dying all over the Earth, which is now also indicated by the decrease in the number of songbirds. The disappearance of insects adversely affects all kinds of natural processes. Pollination of flowering plants is one of the most important activities of insects for today's living world and for us as well.
The vast majority of the current flora on earth depends on insects, and this includes three-quarters of our cultivated plants, one-third of the plants consumed as food, spices, drinks, and herbs. Primarily bees (in addition to domestic bees, there are hundreds of wild bee species), but butterflies, flies, beetles, wasps, bugs and other insects also participate in pollination.
The day of the bees on the initiative of the National Hungarian Beekeeping Association (OMME). from 1994 April 30is celebrated in Hungary, as life in the hive comes to an end around this time. According to the decision of the United Nations, May 20, 2018 is World Bee Day. The UN draws the world's attention to the situation and importance of beekeepers. Einstein the words of a legendary hotel are associated with their name, according to which:
"if the bees die out, humanity will survive the disappearance of the tiny insects for only four years."
They suck up the nectar with their mouthparts, and the pollen is picked up by the tiny hairs on their bodies.
Seventy percent of the Earth's agriculture today depends solely on bees, who without its pollinating activity the plants would be unable to reproduce, so the fauna would practically be decimated in a very short time in the world. In view of this, in the fall of 2019, the Earthwatch Institute, a nature conservation organization officially declared bees the most important living creatures on the planet.
In addition to them, many other living organisms pollinate plants, to which we owe two-thirds of cultivated plants and one-third of our food. In addition to honey bees and bees, many insects, including butterflies, and in other parts of the world many birds and bats also take part in this important work, and there are also plants capable of pollination. He pretended to be for all pollinators draw attention to a significant day March 10 using which 2018in , on Hungarian initiative.
Behind the proposal is the destruction of the insect world and pollinating insects worldwide, but mainly in the northern hemisphere,[1][2] therefore, there was a specific nature conservation problem and its remedy, as well as the possibility of environmental education resulting from public action. The main causes of destruction are large-scale, industrialized agriculture (disappearance, fragmentation of habitats, use of chemicals) and climate change, i.e. changes on a global and industrial scale. Yet, even in the midst of such conditions, significant steps can be taken to protect pollinating insects and improve their life chances with simple, public methods. Last but not least, the usefulness of insects, which are unpleasant for many people, can be clearly and effectively explained and accepted through the example of pollinators.
Pollination is a vital process in which the pollen grains that develop in the anthers reach the pistil of a flower on the same or another plant. Unlike animals, plants cannot set off and find a mate for themselves, but need certain factors to carry out pollination: wind, insects, water (in the case of aquatic plants). Cereals, such as wheat, corn or rice, are wind-pollinated plants. The 80% of wild plants and the 75% of cultivated plants have insect-pollinated flowers, so the presence of insects is essential for fruit and seed formation. Many studies emphasize that the yield increases with 90% thanks to pollinating insects. Without them, many vegetables and fruits would be missing from our tables and some plant species with economic value would also disappear:
– fruits: apples, pears, cherries, cherries, forest fruits, peaches, plums, citrus fruits, kiwi, mango, avocado, etc.
– vegetables: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, eggplants, onions, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, etc.
. - plants with economic value: sunflower, rapeseed, sugar beet, alfalfa, etc.
Although they are often unnoticed, in addition to domestic bees and butterflies, wild bees also play an important role in pollination. It has been observed that the pollinators of apple tree flowers are half and half domestic and wild bees. The situation is similar for other insect-pollinated plants. Research has proven that the fruit begins to develop when, for example, pollinating insects visit the flowers of the apple tree 25 times, the flowers of gooseberries and currants 6 times, and the flowers of strawberries 21-25 times.
They are more advantageous than domestic bees in several ways: unlike domestic bees, males also visit the flowers, they are resistant to diseases that endanger domestic bees, they are gentler and their stings are less painful. They populate the wasp garages made of reeds. Other wasp species pollinate the flowers of strawberries, plums and other fruit trees
Despite the fact that in the last 50 years the area planted with insect-pollinated crops has continuously increased and reached 300%, the number of pollinating insects is decreasing worldwide. This affects North America and Europe to the greatest extent. Thus, for example, between 1944 and 2005, the domestic bee population decreased by 59% in North America, while in 20 years (1985-2005) it decreased by almost 25% in Europe. The situation is similar for other wild pollinating insect species, regardless of whether we are talking about butterflies, bees, wasps, and regardless of whether these species are solitary or live in colonies.
The decline in the number of pollinating insects is influenced by several factors, such as diseases, lack of food, lack of places suitable for reproduction and poisoning.
What can we do for pollinators?
- Create butterfly-friendly gardens and flower beds in an urban environment.
- Plant plants that attract insects. Herbs, for example, are very suitable for this, such as thyme, rosemary, basil, mint, lavender, sage, etc. They can live easily even in pots on the balcony.
- If someone has a large garden and wants to do something serious for pollinators, they should first undergo a change of attitude so that they are able to leave parts of their garden where they do not mow the grass, allow the "weeds" to grow, and tolerate the fact that it is dry after flowering there are bugs in the yard. The latter is important because many solitary bees move into such dry hollow plant stems and build their nests.
- Avoid spraying fruit trees with insecticides, especially during flowering and in general.
- In the case of bred flowers, try to plant varieties that have nectar glands and stamens that are free and accessible to bees and pollinators.
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Source:
https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_beporz%C3%B3k_napja
https://www.turistamagazin.hu/hir/ma-van-a-beporzok-napja
https://sokszinuvidek.24.hu/mozaik/2020/05/20/mehek-vilagnapja-beporzok-mehek
http://www.nhmus.hu/hu/content/beporzok-napja-2023enység
https://www.sor.ro/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/info_prezentare_Insecte_polenizatoare_HU.pd