The issue is OP is spreading misinformation. You‘re right, we haven‘t lost 80% of the bee population, because this was a hypothetical statement in the article saying it would have consequences if it happened.
Comment on We are so cooked
rudyharrelson@lemmy.radio 1 week ago
I definitely don’t want to downplay a crisis, but I feel like I’ve been seeing headlines saying “all the bees are dying and we don’t know why” every year for nearly 20 years now.
I’m no bee expert. Just seems to me, based on the headlines, bees would’ve been extinct 10 years ago.
Some cursory searching led me to Colony Collapse Disorder which, apparently, has no agreed-upon cause. Apparently devastating losses to honey bee colonies started being reported around 1900. But it also mentions:
In 2024, the United States Census of Agriculture reported an all-time high in commercial honey bee hives (mostly in Texas), making them the fastest-growing livestock segment in the country.[38]
Link to the source cited there: https://archive.is/nfeb2
Apparently last year saw the largest honey bee populations in US history. Though apparently that huge boom in honey bee population is a threat to other native pollinators, so I guess that presents its own unique problems.
safesyrup@feddit.org 6 days ago
raod_guitar@feddit.org 6 days ago
The person in the article says you can’t keep up the industry if 80% of the bees die every year.
Jesus_666@lemmy.world 6 days ago
Usually, when people talk about bees dying, they mean wild bees. Unlike honey bees they aren’t cultivated by us. They also tend to be better pollinators than honey bees, adapted to local plants that honey bees can’t handle well.