Decline in Bee Population

by Ryan Kelly

Submitted : Spring 2018

Not only the agricultural industry, but our daily lives are dependent on bees and their avid pollination. It is estimated that bees are responsible for the pollination of seventy types of crops, one third of the food produced in the world, and an annual four hundred million dollars to the economy. Recent data shows that honey bee colonies in the United States are on their way towards extinction. This is a direct result of habitat loss and increased pesticide usage (Greenpeace). This project shows a hypothetical calculus problem using simple differential equations to determine how long it would take for the honey bee colonies in the United States to go extinct. An equation was derived that solved for this time, in years, using the most recently given reduction rate of bee colonies. Results showed that the bee population would be completely extinct in forty-five years.

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