Native bees keep Midwestern crops growing. Here’s how you can help them stay healthy
While honeybees experience a national moment in the spotlight of conservation efforts, other types of bees — particularly those that call the Midwest home — are invariably being pushed to the margins. This lack of attention raises calamities for these insect flyers of flyover country and threatens the habitat, people and breadbasket of America’s heartland.
More than 400 native bee species populate Kansas, while Missouri hosts over 450 species. New species are discovered nearly annually, amounting to a staggering biological diversity. Although these native bees remain underappreciated in comparison to the quintessential honeybee, they provide crucial care for the principal Midwestern habitat: the prairies. As cities, agriculture and manufacturing spread into the core of America, prairie land fell below 1% of its historical range. Particularly troublesome is the unique inability of many prairie flora to naturally regenerate after a disturbance. Replanting efforts have taken place across the Midwest, but pollination is paramount to facilitate the essential seed distribution if prairies want to survive. Enter native bees.
Native bee species, including the better-known bumble, carpenter and digger bees, facilitate cross-pollination for species of plants that are unable to self-fertilize. Additionally, a portion of plants in the mint figwort families depend solely upon bees for pollination. Without these native species, the natural order and ecological diversity of our prairies deteriorate. And although this natural world has a tremendous and far-reaching impact on humans, the people of the Midwest — particularly farmers and the communities they feed — rely directly on native bees beyond the prairie.
Midwestern bees sustain staple crops incapable of self-pollination, such as the canola, cotton and alfalfa that become the livestock feed, clothing and food our nation depends on. Yet, native bees also provide an immense benefit for crops such as corn that, although not dependent on outside pollination, still reap the rewards of maximized resiliency and higher crop yields. Unlike other pollinators, namely moths and butterflies, native bees bring no harm to the plant since they lack a larval stage reliant on the consumption of plant matter.
Bees are the premiere pollinators for plant conservation, and our native bees rise above even the honeybee when it comes to pollinating the prairies and other Midwestern green spaces. Native bees outperform honeybees with a phenomenon known as “buzz pollination,” which involves vibrating flowers at a certain frequency to release more pollen from each plant. While honeybees are generalist pollinators, many species of native bees are pollen specialists to plants on the prairie, including Kansas’s beloved sunflowers. This specialization increases the effectiveness and efficiency of pollination by native bees, which require less nectar and pollen for hives than honeybees, as well as fewer financial resources for beekeepers.
From our prairies to our plates, Kansas City’s prosperity is intertwined with the subsistence of Midwestern bees. Conservation initiatives that shift the focus from honeybees to native species are paramount to sustain crop yields and biodiversity while keeping costs comparatively low. Yet beyond the monetary requirement, some people oppose bee conservation efforts for fear of being stung. While this is certainly a legitimate concern, the risk of serious injury is overblown in popular culture and dwarfed by the ecological benefits that these pollinators provide.
To protect local bee populations through individual and seasonal endeavors, Kansas Citians can plant flowers that bloom throughout the fall, avoid raking areas of their yard for ground-nesting bees, and purchase pesticide-free produce for holiday cooking.
More than half of the world’s native bee species, including our local sunflower leaf-cutting bee, are currently at risk of extinction and desperately need your assistance. In the spirit of election season, keep the native Midwestern bees in mind as your local representatives and the friends of Kansas City’s farmers, families and future.
Natalie Anderson is a freelance writer with a special passion for environmental conservation. She lives in Fairway.
