Nature
Celebrate Pollinators This Spring

Did you know that one in every three bites of the food we eat - from fruits, berries, vegetables, nuts and seeds - is the result of pollination? Did you also know that insect pollination is responsible for $1 billion worth of fruits and vegetables in Canada every year?

It's no wonder bees have the reputation for being the busiest critters in the insect world. Bees and their pollinator counterparts contribute to one of the most important biological processes on our planet - pollination.

The Science of Pollination

Pollination is the transfer of genetic material between plants - the movement of pollen from the anther (male parts) of one flower to the stigma (female parts) of another. Pollination services can be provided by the wind, water, gravity, or by animals such as insects, birds, bats, and even reptiles. About three-quarters of flowering plants rely on animal pollinators for seed and fruit development.

Bees, butterflies, and moths are important pollinators in Canada, but flies, beetles, and hummingbirds also work to pollinate plants. Bees are the most important pollinators because they need nectar and pollen throughout their lives. Features that make them especially good at carrying and transferring pollen include pollen baskets (either on their legs or abdomen) and hair all over their bodies.

Pollinating insects need water and plant resources such as pollen for protein and nectar for energy. Pollinators also require a continuous succession of flowering plants throughout the spring, summer, and autumn to ensure they have sufficient food resources.

Threats to Pollinator Populations

There have been recent reports of worldwide declines in pollinator populations. For example, insecticides can kill pollinators directly, or have sub-lethal effects on pollinators' ability to search for food, as well as their navigational abilities. Herbicides eliminate the natural food sources needed by pollinators when crops are not in bloom. Habitat loss and landscape fragmentation - which are the results of factors like development - decrease the space needed by pollinators and reduce the availability of nesting sites and food sources. Also, invasive alien species, including new diseases and parasites, are taking their toll on pollinators such as honeybees.

Growing International Interest in Pollinators

The North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) was initiated in 2000, and annual meetings are held in Washington, D.C. for delegates from Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. Since then many research activities, protection projects, and even a Pollinator Protection Week, have been established.

The International Pollinators Initiative began in 2001. It led to an African Pollinators Initiative which began in 2002. The first meeting of the Canadian Pollinator Protection Initiative was held in January 2007 in Ottawa. The second meeting was held this March in Guelph, Ontario.

Pollinating Progress

Every greenhouse tomato in Canada is now pollinated by bumblebees that have been bred specifically for the purposes of aiding in pollination. Research into using bumblebees for greenhouse pollination began in 1966, but as recently as ten years ago, greenhouse pollination was still mainly done by hand. Workers would have to come in on weekends, on short notice, and use a little vibrating wand. Now the work is all done by insects.

Canadian blueberry growers deserve much of the credit for worldwide interest in pollinator conservation. In 1969, the forestry industry stopped using DDT to control a spruce budworm outbreak, but switched to the insecticide fenitrothion, which is highly toxic to pollinators. The resulting pollinator die-off caused a massive decline in blueberry production in New Brunswick, and parts of Quebec and Ontario. Blueberry growers took the forest industry to court which resulted in a change in forest spray policies. In addition to setting a precedent in Canadian law, the blueberry case called international attention to the importance of pollinators.

The City of Guelph, Ontario recently announced a brand new development: the world's first "pollinator park". A 40-hectare (100-acre) decommissioned landfill site will be used for education and recreation. Plans are being made to use the park to explain what pollination is all about by engaging the neighborhood in pollinator-friendly activities.

Related Links:

• Pollination Canada
• North American Pollinator Protection Campaign
• Pollinator Partnership
• Wild About Gardening
• Hinterland Who's Who - Pollinator Fact Sheets
• Hinterland Who's Who Tube: Pollinators - Busy doing what?
• National Wildlife Week 2008

Related EnviroZine Link:

• Protecting Plant Pollinators