By now everyone has probably heard that insect populations around the world are dropping. But long before we learned that all insect population levels were decreasing, all anybody could talk about was bees. The bee population around the world started to decline around a decade ago. Since then, some studies have claimed that bee populations are back on the rise, but slowly. However, many experts around the world remain at least somewhat concerned about the dwindling bee populations, as many studies continue to confirm the existence of a bee population crises. Bees are important to the world economy given their pollinating abilities, so you would think that American officials would not have just killed one million of them on purpose. So what gives?
The bees that were put to death were being transported in a truck that was destined for California’s Central Valley. The bees were going to be pollinating almond trees. Nobody was happy to see the bees go. In fact, it could be said that one single individual was responsible for the mass bee execution, and that individual was the man who was driving the truck carrying the bees. The truck driver ended up crashing the shipping truck into an embankment along interstate eighty in northern California. The wreck did not kill the bees, instead government officials decided that the bees needed to be euthanized in order to prevent swarms from forming in regions populated by humans and other animals. If you think that one million bees must be expensive, then you are right, as the truckload cost between one and two million dollars.
Authorities claimed that the bees had to be put down, stating that the most humane way to euthanize the bees involved spraying soapy water at them.. The authorities said that some of the bees got away, but they called local beekeepers to notify them of possible bee sightings in the area. The truck driver was pleased to have avoided serious injuries as a result of the wreck, but that likely changed if he was forced to foot the bill for the massive loss of bees.
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