h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello Eeyore

A very long way back in the history of evolution we must share a common ancestor with the bee and the wasp so I hope that mite isn't going to home in on us next. Perhaps IT has us scheduled for extinction. Did you know that ants evolved from wasps by the way.

As for humans being too nasty, I expect that might help since natural selection doesn't ever seem to have selected for altruism, but then look at those big meat eating dinasaurs - they were a bit unkind to the dinasaurs they considered dinner, and they are no more.

Did I mention I loved that poem of yours?

If I recall correctly, the Africanised bees do make a lot more honey than other kinds, and seem to be more aggressive when they are invading an area than when they have become accustomed to it. Allegedly, the beekeepers in the region of South America where they first arrived are now getting along with them much better than beekeepers in freshly colonised areas.
Also, they are supposedly be more resistant to some damaging infections than some other bees, as they are more obsessive about hygiene.

"Africanised bees can be, and usually are reasonable" doesn't make for exciting movies and hysterical headlines. Poor old bees - and they work so hard.

As I have seen some really, really, old threads revived this soporific Sunday afternoon, here is another one. Duncan mentioned that honey bees were expected to be extinct within 10 years (that would be 2010). As far as I know, the situation is still the same.

Honey is still available, but I have noticed it's harder to get lately. What else has changed - or not changed - and were the forecasts always correct?

"since natural selection doesn't ever seem to have selected for altruism"


If natural selection had not selected for altruism, altruism would not exist.



I believe bees are beginning to recover, actually.

Odd, isn't it?

For the whole of my childhood, "21st century" meant "the FUTURE!!!!". My favourite comic was called "2000AD", "2001" was the epitome of science fiction, Pulp's "Disco 2000" looked forward to that iconic date.

And here we are, looking back at the quaint notions we had, way back in the year 2000. Notions like the apocalyptic vision of world hunger brought on by the complete absence of pollinators leading to agricultural collapse by... about five years ago.

Hmm. I sense a new thread coming on...

Indeed my current garden has three types of bee... but the recovery is recent, and there still aren't many butterflies about

I do not usually see any bees in our garden. Maybe they are just hiding behind all those plants. We do have a lot of birds though. (do birds eat bees?)

In my garden spiders seem to be the main bee predator.. but even their impact is small.

As far as I'm aware bees (honey bees at least) are more or less completely extinct in the wild in the UK.

They only now exist because bee-keepers keep them going.

I hope I'm wrong in that, but that's my understanding.

Couldn't say about the UK. They're fine in America.

"They're fine in America"
Have you actually asked one though?

Like: "How are you doin', Honey?'