Is there a more important insect than the bee? Ah Sam Flowers thinks not. Bees are responsible for pollinating 1/3 of the plants that provide the food we eat, or 70 of the top 100 food crops. Along with the flowering plants they tend to, bees evolved millions of years ago to become efficient transporters of pollen, unfailing in their efforts to keep their own hives alive (one colony contains 10,000 to 60,000 family members), and in the process, fertilizing the plants they drink from. Without them, our flowering plants would cease to exist, which would halt the production of everything from apples and avocados to coffee and carrots.
