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Peter L Borst > There has been tremendous recent enthusiasm among conservation advocates for "ecosystem services". <
This discussion has been focussed on how many commercial hives are needed for pollinating agricultural crops. there does seem a case for re-considering standard advice on how many hives are needed per acre. However, growers are canny. Surely many experiments have been made on the effect of reducing hives per acre?
We should not forget that pollinators are also needed to maintain wild plants, which in turn are needed to support wild birds and other wild creatures. Cutting back the supply of hives for migratory pollination may be economic but more thought should be given to what is needed to support/ conserve the overall network of small apiariies - and of habitat for wild pollinators - needed to support the diversity of flowering plants in countryside and urban areas.
Unless of course, beekeepers have no souls - and all that matters to them is money.
Robin
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