But it seems that the population has started to stabilise, thanks to an intensive programme to conserve urban bee populations.
Dutch city parks introduced ‘bee hotels’, ‘bee bus stops’ and ‘honey highways’ in an attempt to boost bee populations, and according to their 4th National Bee Census (where the public are asked to record the number of bees they notice) the plan seems to be working.
According to Wageningen University, The Netherlands is the second largest agricultural exporter in the world after the United States. Yet despite the important role bees play in pollinating crops, their numbers have been in decline in the countries for almost 80 years.
200,000 bees were recorded in the census. Naturalis, one of the organisers, comfirms that the numbers are now steady.
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Video by BrightVibes.
