Bees Boost Irish Economy
Known
for its brilliant yellow flowers, oilseed rape is being grown to an
increasing extent in Ireland as farmers respond to a heightened demand
for pure plant oil. This oil is an important source of biofuel and could
ultimately reduce our reliance on non-renewable fossil fuels as we seek
greener, more environmentally friendly solutions to energy demands.
The
crop is pollinated adequately by the wind, but, for the first time in
Ireland, researchers were able to show that foraging bees transferring
pollen from flower to flower greatly boost the all-important yield. When
bees were experimentally excluded from visiting the flowers, seed
production was, on average, 27% lower than when they had open access.
This
discovery, which will soon appear in the international Journal of Insect Conservation, added to related findings that were reported in
another article in the journal GCB Bioenergy. Both papers sprang from
research conducted as part of the Sectoral Impacts on Biodiversity and
Ecosystem Services (SIMBIOSYS) initiative, which received €1.6 million
in funding from the Environmental Protection Agency over a five-year
period.
In
addition to the discovery that bees are important assets to oilseed
rape farmers, the previous paper showed that these fields were buzzing
with insect life comprising many species of bees, hoverflies and
beetles.
Associate
Professor in Botany at Trinity, and Director of the Trinity Centre for
Biodiversity Research, Jane Stout, who was the principal investigator on
both papers said: “Oilseed rape fields are full of pollinators,
including honeybees, bumblebees, solitary bees and hoverflies. Although
many people think of the honeybee as being our main pollinating species,
bumblebees and hoverflies are also important pollinators of oilseed
rape crops. We found hundreds of bees, especially in spring oilseed
rape, where we estimated on average 600-800 colonies of bumblebees alone
using the pollen and nectar from just one field.”
The
diversity and sheer volume of pollinators in oilseed rape crops came as
something of a happy surprise, because some reports had previously
suggested that swathes of the plant might discourage farm-friendly
insects. However, researchers caution that different patterns could
arise when the crop is grown on a larger scale than was investigated.
They also recommend interspersing fields that grow food and biofuel
crops in the hope that such a patchwork quilt-like pattern will promote
insect diversity and enhance the precious pollination service provided
by the critters.
Researcher Dara Stanley, who worked with Stout on these projects, added: "Oilseed
rape crops in Ireland are expanding hugely, and, if they benefit from
pollination, this is both good news for farmers, and an incentive to
conserve bees in agricultural areas.”
One
major threat to bees comes from the use of certain pesticides called
neo-nicotinoids, which have been implicated in recent declines of many
species throughout Europe and North America. An EU ban preventing the
use of these pesticides on oilseed rape was recently agreed, which will
hopefully help the bees of Ireland keep up their good work in our
farmers’ fields. However, there are concerns that use on other crops,
which is still permitted, will negatively affect our furry friends.
