Diversity of bumblebees threatened in East Asia: study

BEIJING, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Bumblebee species in east Asia are being threatened by climate change and vegetation change, according to a recent Chinese study.

Bumblebees are very important pollinators, which play an important role in agricultural and natural ecosystems. As their biodiversity is highly vulnerable to the impact of environmental change, the number of bumblebees has declined sharply in several areas, including Europe and North America.

east Asia is one of the regions most abundant in bumblebees in the world, but investigation of bumblebee species in the region is relatively late.

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences used species distribution model to evaluate 29 bumblebee species endemic to east Asia.

Results predicted that 59 to 93 percent of bumblebees in east Asia will experience range loss in around 2050 due to climate change and vegetation change. By then, around 3 percent of the species are predicted to be critically endangered and about 10 to 17 percent of the species endangered.

The researchers also proposed protection measures for bumblebees based on the vegetation characteristics of bumblebee distribution, including improving the grassland vegetation, forest and farmland they inhabit.

The research provides reference for policy-making on insect diversity protection. It was published in the journal Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment.