The worldwide loss of bees and other pollinators is driven primarily by changes in land use, land management and pesticide application, especially in the global South, according to a global assessment.
The findings could be key to adapting global policies for reversing the decline of pollinators such as bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, flies and even bats. These are essential for the reproductive success of more than 75 per cent of crops and flowers globally, playing an important role in nutrition and the economy.
Tom Breeze, co-author of the research, published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, told SciDev.Net: “One of the biggest challenges in international pollinator conservation is knowing what we should be doing and where, and how it could affect people.
“This study gives us a first indication of what the biggest pressures on pollinators are in different parts of the world and, more crucially, how at risk the different benefits we get from pollinators are.”
Read more at SciDev.net
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