How do you feel about bees? Do you get irritated when they buzz (嗡嗡地叫) around you and do you fear their mission is just to sting you? Love them or loathe them, these little insects are extremely important creatures, and without them we might starve.
Bees deserve some respect— they give us honey, and they play their part either in pollinating (给……授粉) the many vegetables and fruits we eat directly or pollinating the food for the animals that we then consume. In fact, they are the world’s most important pollinators. That’s not all— a study by the University of Reading in the UK, found bees and other pollinating insects have a global economic value of around & 120bn and contribute around & 690m to the UK economy every year.
So, bees are worth protecting, and although a small number of bee species are vital for crops such as oilseed rape (欧洲油菜) , apples and strawberries, experts say we should be taking care of all our bees. Researchers say conservation efforts should be aimed at a wide number of species— even those that currently contribute little to crop pollination— in order to maintain biodiversity and ensure future food security.
Unfortunately, in recent times, bee populations have been declining due to pesticides (杀虫剂), disease and habitat loss. It’s something we should be worried about because, as Gill Perkins, chief executive of the Bumblebee (大黄蜂) Conservation Trust, told BBC Future website: “They provide a whole ecosystem service.” The recent lockdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic seem to have given bee populations a little boost because they faced less human disturbance, traffic and polluting fumes.
Conservationists hope, going forward, people will appreciate bees more and encourage them to thrive as they reconnect with nature. Gill Perkins says, “They are beginning to realize how their mental health and well-being are supported by nature— particularly by bumblebees, which are so iconic, beautiful and buzzy.” So, it really seems time to give bees a second chance.
12. What do bees do to the fruits and vegetables we eat?
A.They store them. | B.They pollinate them. |
C.They destroy them. | D.They consume them. |
13. What reason might contribute to the fall-off in bee populations?
A.Habitat loss. | B.Natural enemies. |
C.Heavy weather. | D.Crop pollination. |
14. What does the underlined word “thrive” in Paragraph 5 mean?
A.Grow. | B.Plant. | C.Decrease. | D.Shrink. |
15. In which section of a website can we probably find the text?
A.Tourism. | B.Sports. | C.Business. | D.Science. |