Colony collapse disorder (CCD) and ongoing pollinator decline represent a major animal welfare and ecological crisis. Understanding the causes and supporting pollinator health benefits billions of insects.
Whether bees are sentient in a morally significant way remains debated, but evidence that they have preferences, learn, and show stress responses suggests their welfare matters. Colony losses from CCD and related causes represent deaths of billions of individual animals each year. The ecological consequences — reduced pollination of wild plants and agricultural crops — also indirectly affect the welfare of many other species. Supporting pollinator recovery is one of the highest-leverage environmental welfare actions available to individuals.