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The insects are important to farmers. When a honeybee lands on a flower in plant, pollen (花粉) sticks to its legs. When the bee lands on another flower, some of the pollen falls off and fertilizes the second plant.
The act of spreading pollen is responsible for many fruits, vegetables, nuts and other crops. Yet about 30 percent of honeybees in the United States and other areas have died in recent years.
Mike Leggett is a researcher at the University of Maryland. He wants to learn why so many bees are dying. “The number of colonies (蜂群) that die every winter has been one in three. So on average 30 percent of the colonies have died every winter over the last six winters. And that's a huge number.” His research team examined the pollen that honeybees carried to their homes. They found that the pollen contained high levels of 35 different pesticides (杀虫剂), which are chemicals used to protect plants. “Pesticides are used, and have been used, pretty widely, for centuries, to protect plants from diseases,” says Mr Leggett.
Keith Oh linger, a farmer and beekeeper in Maryland, has watched many of his bees die every winter. Mr Ohlinger thinks widespread bee death is caused by several things happening at once. But he does not feel sure that pesticides are a part of the problem, “I felt it was the result of a lot of little things. I didn't feel that there was probably one smoking gun. But there's a division (分歧) there, some people feel that it is just one thing.”
Honeybees are important to agriculture. This makes the search for an answer to their death very important for Mr Leggett's team. As he knows, one in every three bites of food we eat is somehow pollinated by honeybees.
