Pollinators

September 17, 2008September 16, 2008

The value of pollination: euros 153 billion in 2005

INRA and CNRS French scientists and a UFZ German scientist found that the worldwide economic value of the pollination service provided by insect pollinators, bees mainly, was â‚¬153 billion in 2005 for the main crops that feed the world. This figure amounted to 9.5% of the total value of the world agricultural food production. The study also determined that pollinator disappearance would translate into a consumer surplus loss estimated between â‚¬190 to â‚¬310 billion.

My jaw dropped. Read the full study here.

September 9, 2008September 9, 2008

Nibbles: Yeast, Weeds, Bioprospecting, Iraq, Pine wilt, Vietnam, GM, GM, Insects, Bees, Sheep, Fowl

Boffins to brew Jurassic Park beer.
Boffins fingerprint weeds.
Boffins scour arctic for antifreeze proteins.
Boffins to reclaim Garden of Eden.
Boffins fight to save pines in Europe.
Boffins improve production of rice and fruits in Mekong Delta.
Boffins to spend $US3.5billion on GM in China.
Boffin “disgraces himself”.
Boffin says insects are agrobiodiversity too.
Boffin wants you to plant sunflowers and count bees. Other boffins dig up evidence of bliblical beekeeping.
Boffins find endogenous retroviruses in sheep different to ones in wild relatives. Via.
Boffins kill beautiful theory about pre-Columbian chickens with ugly fact.

September 6, 2008

Bosnian bee-fest

Spent the whole week in Sarajevo for a meeting, but did get a chance to explore on Friday morning. Doing so, I stumbled on the Sarajevo Bee-Fest: lots of stalls with people selling all kinds of different local honeys, other bee products, and bee-keeping equipment. No sign of worry about colony collapse disorder.

September 3, 2008September 3, 2008

Nibbles: Seed hunter, Milk, Wine, Pollinators, Cacao, Berries

Seed hunter hunts cash. Australians can watch on 21 October.
Is selling milk retail really diversification? Alex thinks so.
In vino variety. Jeremy sez: “Theft (of headline) is flattery”.
Pollinator presence plummets. Luigi alsoÂ sez: “Theft (of headline) is flattery”.
Cacao Germplasm Evaluation and Characterization Project. Nuff said.
Ribes redux.

August 29, 2008August 29, 2008

Nibbles: Amazon, Aquaculture, Bees, ICTs, Food prices, Dates, Cats, Taro

Not so pristine after all.
Farming the sturgeon.
Colony Collapse Disorder 101. And how floral scents affect pollinator behaviour.
Presentation on how mobile phones are changing rural livelihoods.
Urban food gardens to combat high food prices in South Africa. And a different approach in Madagascar.
Getting dates in Saudi Arabia is becoming difficult.
“Winged” cats.
The importance of taro in Hawaii. Thanks, Tevita.