• 🦄🦄🦄
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    2 years ago

    What commercial purpose do non-honey bees serve??? Why should we save them???

    Edit: yeesh, didn’t think that needed an /s

    • z3rOR0ne
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      2 years ago

      Viewing things from a solely commercial perspective is myopic and like most capitalistic business practitioners, promotes a mindset that thinks waaay too short term. You can’t make your money off your crops decades from when you’re only thinking about this quarters profits. Put simply, the selfish you today fucks yourself over tomorrow.

      But even if you were to take this myopic and short sighted approach, Honey Bees are just average pollinators amongst a diverse range of insects and some small birds.

      Additionally planting a wide variety of drought resistant flora is better for both wild as well as domesticated pollinators and is a more environmentally friendly practice than just keeping honey bees.

    • @[email protected]
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      2 years ago

      Edit: yeesh, didn’t think that needed an /s

      The best piece of advice someone gave me about social media is “always assume you’re talking to a 12 year old kid with autism”

    • @[email protected]
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      52 years ago

      I offer two points for consideration:

      1. Bees help plants maintain genetic diversity among certain plants that other pollinators may not target. Genetic diversity helps maintain a thriving variety of plant, tolerant to different environments. Especially important is our environments are changing.

      2. Animals that are bred until they cannot survive outside of certain environments, (co-dependence) are destined to become extinct in the absence of said environment. (In case there’s any confusion, insects fall under the umbrella of “animals” taxonomically. Also, in this sentence, the codependent animals may be humans.)

      Diverse populations of bees provide benefits and necessities outside of commercial purposes, and are going the way of the American Bison. (Please note the differences from the way of the dinosaur.)

      • 🦄🦄🦄
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        32 years ago

        Obviously, didn’t think I’d need the /s here of all places. 😓

  • @[email protected]
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    122 years ago

    Save all bees. Except carpenter bees, which are to be terminated with extreme prejudice.

    (/s obviously, I’m sure they are important to the larger ecosystem somehow)

    • @[email protected]
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      52 years ago

      Fucking carpenter bees (aka winged termites). Ironically, the males have no stingers but they are extremely aggressive and will kamakazi dive bomb you in the face repeatedly if you get near the entrance to the nest.

    • @[email protected]
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      12 years ago

      Yeah fuck those guys. Had an awning built over our patio and didn’t even get through the whole summer before one started digging a hole into one of the rafters. Our backyard is now a no-fly zone for those bastards.

  • @[email protected]
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    402 years ago

    We have a bee hotel and it’s so damn cute seeing these little solitary bees filling up the holes.

    We probably have 20-30 nests.

    • ForestOrca
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      102 years ago

      Yay! Me too! I had so many different species visit my yard this year. Like 3 different species of big ‘bumble bees’. And so many of the other kind. I like the iridescent green one!! :-D

    • @[email protected]
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      22 years ago

      I have a little butterfly home, but it got populated by yellow jackets and now I don’t know what to do.

      • Drusas
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        22 years ago

        Huh. I thought yellow jackets nest underground.

    • @[email protected]
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      32 years ago

      OPs post reminded me to get a new one built!

      Whereabouts do you live and what sizes of holes are you drilling?

      • @[email protected]
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        92 years ago

        If you have a drill, they’re stupid easy to make. Read about what size holes the bees in your area like. And leave a smooth edge on the entry! They won’t use it if they sense a risk to their wings.

        Might as well roll your own, not like you can reuse them after they nest. Mites and such are an issue.

        • Drusas
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          72 years ago

          You can reuse them, but you have to carefully clean the nesting holes. I have professionally made bee houses that I use. The wooden blocks that hold the nesting holes can be removed, opened, and sanitized. This also allows you to harvest cocoons to keep safe from predators/weather for the next year.

      • @[email protected]
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        32 years ago

        You do know that this world is basically populated primarily by insects right? They’re arguably the most important type of animal on earth

    • @[email protected]
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      72 years ago

      Not many realize this, but sticking with the non-bee pollination theme you have things like beetles, butterflies, moths, some species of flies, ants, wasps… the list goes on.

      Non-inscect options include some speciea of bats and birds.

      That’s not even getting into the tons of other useful things insects do.

    • @[email protected]
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      22 years ago

      I rescued one recently by picking it up

      They’re so docile it’s awesome

      And my god did it ever perk up when I plonked it on a flower. It was so ridic cute

  • Lowlee Kun
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    212 years ago

    In this thread: Animals only deserve to live if they have a direct use case to us humans. People here are not sure whats alle the fuss about mass extinction. Carry on beloved free market capitalism.

  • ComradeSharkfucker
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    2 years ago

    My parents have a hive of wood bees in the pergola my dad made. They pollinate our lime tree and I love them

  • @[email protected]
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    42 years ago

    Can’t get on board with this. fuck non honey bees.

    Wasp and hornet populations are bigger than ever. They are pests that don’t need our support. We are doing them a huge favor by raising the earth’s temperature. They love this. In my area wasps are easily more noticeable over the past few years as summers have gotten hotter and hotter. I’ve never had so many issues with carpenter bees either.

    • @[email protected]
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      2 years ago

      Carpenter bees are easy. If they’re eating your house, just get a trap. Aside from a rare wasp, they’re the only things that get in those.

      Looks like this:

      https://www.bonanza.com/listings/Kentucky-red-Cedar-Carpenter-Bee-Trap/1482301003?goog_pla=1&gpid=&keyword=&goog_pla=1&pos=&ad_type=pla&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpc-oBhCGARIsAH6ote9YNQRqdtnYh8MpaZBskM6Yag3GctqOIScCZQJTckdi29qZVsSnBTgaAoDdEALw_wcB

      Also, sure the carpenter bees aren’t actually bumblebees? I can’t tell 'em apart in flight.

    • @[email protected]
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      42 years ago

      Actually they really don’t love the rising temperature at all, because that combined with human activity directly is killing a lot of their food sources, which is why many are endangered. Wasps are important pollinators as well as bees, so if they go it will make life even more difficult for a lot of different flowers. Also, how often are you actually stung by wasps or hornets? Do they actively hunt you down and attack you? I’ve spent many calm evenings sitting and watching wasps fly around various flowers and bushes right next to me and never been bothered by them.

      Thinking we just need to save honey bees is kind of like thinking we need to save cows from extinction, they’re domesticated.

        • @[email protected]
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          22 years ago

          Bro I’ve been stung exactly twice (both at the same time, stepped on a yellow jacket nest) my whole life, am I just lucky?

          • @[email protected]
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            12 years ago

            I’ve only been stung stepping on a nest of ground bees.

            Most wasps and daubers around me are pretty chill. But we got a nest of bald faced hornets a few years ago, and damn they were aggressive.

            I left the nest alone, and none of us got stung, but def got chased inside a couple of times. They attacked the window for 20 minutes afterward, lol.

            2/10 would still leave them alone again.

      • @[email protected]
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        12 years ago

        Fair enough. A lot of people still refer to wasps / hornets as “bees” but this is not scientifically correct. Carpenter bees can go to hell. Nothing against the bumble, but if I’m going to get behind saving something that can sting me or kids and potentially induce lethal allergic reactions, it’s going to be the one that at least makes a decent cereal topping.

        • @[email protected]
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          52 years ago

          It’s not about you and your family’s comfort. These insects are essential to the environment as a whole. You want a livable planet for your children, you want to save even the stingy bois. That being said, fuck wasps.

    • @[email protected]OP
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      22 years ago

      I mean they pollinate too and are important to keep some pests in check. So they are important to the ecosystem.

      They are also tiny demons and give me a sense of panic no other creature can because there is just so many of them and they are so small and full of hate.

      It is a bummer that these are not mutually exclusive.