Science magazine via the Guardian 1^st Mar 2013

Loss of wild pollinator’s serious threat to crop yields, study finds

Wild bees and other insects twice as effective as honeybees in producing seeds and fruit on crops. The decline of wild bees and other pollinators may be an even more alarming threat to crop yields than the loss of honeybees, a worldwide study suggests, revealing the irreplaceable contribution of wild insects to global food production.

Scientists studied the pollination of more than 40 crops in 600 fields across every populated continent and found wild pollinators were twice as effective as honeybees in producing seeds and fruit on crops including oilseed rape, coffee, onions, almonds, tomatoes and strawberries. Furthermore, trucking in managed honeybee hives did not replace wild pollination when that was lost, but only added to the pollination that took place.

And they laughed at Rachel Carson

But now the silent spring is upon us