Bee Decline

The population of bees is declining which is affecting crop growth and pollination of plants in the U.S. Bee decline in the U.S started in the 1980's and has progressed through the decades. In the past 20 to 40 years bee decline has started to increase rapidly because of the growth of population and the loss of habitat. Also, bees are declining in the U.S because of the growth of bee-harming diseases. Bee decline is affecting the crops that are dependent on pollinators which are most of the U.S produced crops. Crops need pollination to keep growing and without pollinators, this will not happen.

There are 139 counties in the U.S that are especially affected by bee decline. This is occurring because wild bee numbers are decreasing faster than urbanization is occurring. Some of the agricultural counties that are being affected are Central Valley, Upper Midwest, Pacific West, and Great Plains in California. In addition to these agricultural regions in California, there are also counties located in West Texas, and the Southern Mississippi River Valley, which is struggling just as much.