Apis mellifera is just one of the thousands of species of bee found in the world. Native to Europe, it was introduced to the Americas during the colonial era along with the other types of livestock that was imported.

Yes, honey bees are indeed a livestock!

Honey collection from wild bees has been practiced for thousands of years, well before we managed to domesticate them. There are several Apis specis found in the Old World and there are actually other groups of bees (stingless Meliponini) that also produce honey. This is a part of the survival strategy for winter survival, as the majority of the hive will attempt to last through the winter and thus needs a source of food while forage is scarce.

Here in North America, we have around four thousand species of native bees, one of the most well known groups being the bumble bees (Bombus). Problems arose when the honey bee was introduced to the continent, as their industrialized nature allowed them to use a livestock quality to bring about a severe numerical advantage when compared to native species. Combined with habitat destruction and other negative environmental factors, the odds became stacked against our native bees and they gradually began a decline in populations, species diversity, etc.

Competition for food and resources is not the only issue for bees like Bombus, as some diseases and parasites (like Varroa destructor) can cross species lines and wreak havoc on native populations. It only gets worse when you remember that honey bees are a livestock, so when they have issues like these, the problem is taken much more seriously with money being on the line. This is exactly how honey bees managed to hijack the Save the Bees initiative, which originally came about to bring awareness towards our declining native populations. Sometimes making the problem worse is the layman believing that helping honey bees will ¨save the bees¨ and thus misappropriating resources away from the species in need and towards the problem.

So, it is important to look at the whole picture, just like in the crypto space! The whole ecosystem may revolve around BTC, but there are so many other facets that make it whole!

Thanks for reading!

~jday~