Bees voted most ‘irreplaceable species’ in the world

Honeybees on wild fennel. Image courtesy of wolfpix

European scientists draw attention to global plight of bees at Earthwatch debate.

For more photos of bees and other insects visit wolfpix's photostream.

Bees were declared the most invaluable species on the planet at an Earthwatch-sponsored debate held last week at the Royal Geographical Society in London.

On November 20, the European Parliament adopted a resolution (485-13 with five abstentions) calling on the European Commission to increase research into the cause of declining bee populations and to take immediate action to reverse the decline throughout the EU and the rest of the world. Sponsors of the resolution warn that the decline in bees poses a threat to food production. The resolution also calls for research to establish whether there is a link between the use of pesticides, including thiamethoxam, imidacloprid, clothianidin and fipronil, on bee mortality.

The other speakers at the “Irreplaceable – The World’s Most Invaluable Species” debate were Ian Redmond OBE, chair of the Ape Alliance representing primates, Kate Jones of the Zoological Society of London, arguing for bats; Professor Lynne Boddy of Cardiff School of Biosciences, representing fungi; and Professor David Thomas of the School of Ocean Sciences, University of Bangor, who was a close second in the debate, with his argument for plankton.

This was the eighth annual debate sponsored by Earthwatch with support from the Mitsubishi Corporation. Previous themes included endangered ecosystems and invasive species.