1000 Flowers for the Planet - #640 Save Franklin's Bumble Bee

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #640 Save Franklin's Bumble Bee

So many species are endangered. The Flower suggestions have pointed this out a few times over the past couple of years, beginning with Flower #1 Care for Bees. They are such an important part of our ecosystem. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s “Red List” the Franklin’s Bumblebee is critically endangered, and that spells disaster for the area where this little bee lives, which is in a small spot between southern Oregon and northern California, from the coast to the Sierra-Cascade Ranges.  According to the IUCN website [at http://support.iucnredlist.org/species/franklin%E2%80%99s-bumble-bee] “threats to this species include: exotic diseases introduced via trafficking in commercial bumble bee queens and colonies for greenhouse pollination of tomatoes; habitat loss due to destruction, degradation, conversion; and pesticides and habitat change.” You may note that all of these threats are man-made. We may not actually be able to save Franklin’s Bumblebee but we should learn from these examples. We DO have the power to change outcomes through our behaviours, which start with awareness, then spreading the word to bring people to action.