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| Robber fly (Laphria thoracica) |
The bee-like insect in the photo above, however, is not one of those peaceful, nectar collecting bumble bee. Instead of hovering and collecting honey, I found it on a leave of wild rose eating another bug spaces.
It somewhat shocked me looking at this carnivorous bee-like insect.
Carnivorous Bee-like Fly - Laphria thoracica
The robber flies (Diptera: Asilidae) are carnivorous.
Bumble bees, and honey bees are not. They purely rely on flower nectar for foods.
Honey bees are important to our foods and other industries.
"In Illinois the honey produced every year by our one domesticated insect (Apis mellifera) is valued at over a million dollars. In addition a quarter million pounds of beewax worth a hundred thousand dollars are also manufactured by these insects. Important as is this honey and wax for our use and welfare, their value is small when compared to the importance of honey bees, and countless other insects, in the cross pollinating of plants. About 85 percent of all flowering plants, including most agricultural crops, require insect pollination for their existence. Without insects as pollinators there would be no crops, no gardens, vegetables or flowers, no fruits, no shrubs, no tobacco, and little of the plant growth that enriches our landscape."
So then why should we use pesticides that kill bees? Neonicotinoids or neonics are long in the list of pesticides that have been listed in the FDA's checklist.
"So close has been the interrelations between insects and flowering plants that evidence of mutual dependence may be seen in the structure of both organisms. The showy blossoms and sweet fragrance of plants is for the attraction of insects and not for the delight of human senses. Nectar seeking insects cannot obtain nectar without picking up pollen grains as well, which are then carried on to the next flower, assuring the plant's reproduction. Bees show the most extensive specialized structures in relation to flowers. The mouth, as already shown, is lengthened for sucking up nectar. The body is clothed with countless hairs, even the eyes, so that the whole animal is literally a device for brushing up pollen. Bee larvae feed on bee-bread made from pollen and honey and a device for the transporting of quantities of pollen may be found on the hind legs of workers. Into this pollen basket (corbicula) is packed the grains that are combed from the body by combs and scrapers on the feet."
-- Common Illinois insects : and why they are interesting, by Wright A. Gilbert
The laboratory experiments show the insecticides affect the bees behavior in the similar way that has been observed in the field. While the correlations are clear, the FDA is taking time to assess the damage by the use of these pesticides to bees.