Sorry Bees

As I was writing this week's column on beneficial insects (Clovis News Journal: www.cnjonline.com), I hesitated while making a "bad bug" list, knowing it was iffy territory because all insects have a vital role in the natural world, and therefor they are all beneficial on one level or another.
Even flies, which are undeniably gross and annoy us, provide the critical service of performing waste disposal by aiding in the decomposition of biological materials (go maggots!)
And bee's, who I also named to the "bad bug" list, not only give us honey, but are great stewards of their neighborhoods by pollinating plants and making our gardens healthy and beautiful.
Truthfully, even though some of their characteristics may land them on a "bad bug" list, an insect's impact on people and the environment needs to be weighed case-by-case. An angry bee hive = bad, a happy bumble bee carting pollen from one side of your garden to the other = good.
I was reminded of the distinctions when a reader who had seen the beneficial insect column this week sent me a link to a story about a recently discovered solitary bee in the Middle East, the Osmia avoseta (take a minute to read the story, complete with cool photos.)
The closest thing to true flower faeries our world will ever see, the hard-working mothers of this species cut pieces from colorful flower petals to create little petal-mache cocoon nurseries bound together with nectar as cradles for their young.
These sweet, bee-made flower tubes are beyond beautiful in their perfection and the mother bee puts them together with the utmost care and attention to detail.
I will admit, reading about the flower artistry, I cringed.
Bees are not all bad.
In fact, I like bees (from a distance) and have even sat and watched in fascination as lumbering bumble bees go from flower to flower in the garden.
On the flip side, having been the recipient of my share of stings and because a buzzing hive is high on the list of instinctually terrifying items, I have also congratulated preying mantids when I saw them with wasps clasped in their pincers.
But in recognition of their contributions, I will apologize to the flies, because I am sure as heck glad somebody does that job, and I will also apologize to the bees out there because I know they work hard and give us much sweet beauty, but at the same time I will say I can't completely regret the fact the hunters view them as delicacies, at least in the areas where I tend to spend time.
When it comes down to it, bugs are just one of nature's balancing acts and like it or not, wherever there's a little yang, you gotta have a little yin.