Update! Honeybee Final Project

Hey there!

This week has been crazy busy, so sorry for the late post! Because I've been grinding away on work, there really won't be much of a post today, but I though I'd update you on how my final project is going. 

In case you weren't aware, I'm doing my final project on colony collapse disorder of honeybees in the United States. I assume you've probably heard a little bit on the subject in the past. Around 2008 is when this issue became a big problem. 

If you don't know much about it, let me tell you a little bit about it! Basically, all over the world, the honeybee population in colonies, specifically for farms, has been declining. The mysterious part? No one is really sure what the exact cause is! Now, if I had to guess I don't think it's a single cause, like a disease, but rather a combination of several factors. Parasites, diseases, treatment of honeybee colonies, and genetic variation are probably all involved in some form or another. 

Now I know what you might be thinking, who cares? They're just bees, they're pests as far as I'm concerned. Honeybees are incredibly essential to the function of this planet. Honeybees help pollinate a lot of our food, and without them, about 1/3 of our food would not be available! They also make honey, which is delicious. Their role in the world is so vital, and their absence is already being felt in some parts of the world. In some areas of China, for example, farmers have started to hand-pollinate their plants. That's right, they have to physically go out onto the farm and pollinate each individual flower. 

Now, in my final project I have decided to focus on the United States. California, because it has so many farms and is an important almond producer, is also focused on. Below is a map I made showing how many honeybee colonies collapsed in the year 2012-2013. Not all states have the same number of colonies, but regardless, the drastic decline of these populations is intense.

That's all I really have time for today, but hopefully this provided some quick info and you enjoyed a brief update. I'll post next week more about the final project and present all my infographics/maps.

-The Green Sasquatch