Edian Rodriguez talks about misconceptions of bees and their importance to urban enviornments as well as rural ones. | Joe Schaefer.
Keeping the bees: a misunderstood species
Few creatures that can be found in the city have more of a stigma surrounding them than bees. Many people see bees as dangerous harmful while fewer see them for the benefit to the ecosystem that they are.
Edian Rodriguez talks about misconceptions of bees and their importance to urban enviornments as well as rural ones. | Joe Schaefer.
“The misconception about bees is that they’re these angry insects that will sting you if you’re around their food source or if you’re wearing red or yellow and look like a flower,” Edian Rodriguez, a beekeeper in Philadelphia said. “This couldn’t be farther from the truth.”
Rodriguez is a member of the Philadelphia beekeeper’s guild, a nonprofit organization that promotes urban beekeeping by offering classes and hosting and attending events around the city.
Bee population is known to correlate with environmental health. The ever-sprawling nature of the city has contributed to a huge decline in the urban bee population over time. Urban beekeeping helps to bring some of that ecological diversity back into the city.
Bees help build an ecosystem by pollinating flowers as they fly from one to the next, helping the plants reproduce. Where their impact is more easily noticed by people, of course, is on grocery store shelves. It isn’t shocking to anyone that honey comes from bees, but when the honey is being produced locally, people can buy a fresher, less processed product that more significantly impacts their community. Buying from small scale beekeepers helps to promote a healthier city ecosystem and ensure the ethical treatment of bees.
- Joe Schaefer