This year's suggested focus for Earth Day is Protect Our Species.

All living things play a unique role in the complex web of life. As global citizens, we must work together to protect endangered and threatened species. Bees and other insects are threatened! Here at The Mercantile Co. Bee's are our focus for this year. Without our pollinators our food supplies would be devastated and entire Ecosystems would collapse.

Bees are extraordinary creatures that exist in all types of climates around the world, from forests in Europe to deserts in Africa, and even in the Arctic Circle. Unlike honeybees and their hives, wild bees in the U.S. live in many different places: under the ground, in holes, and in trees. Personally I had a hive move into the mast of my family's sail boat, we got it removed with the hive unharmed with the guidance of some local beekeepers.

For the past ten years, beekeepers, in the United States and Europe, have reported annual hive losses of 30 percent or higher. In fact, one in four wild bee species in the U.S. is at risk of extinction.

The Mercantile Co. has selected Forsyth County Beekeeper as one of our supported organization. They provide education on beekeeping, bee conservation and if you get to know the right member honey.

What can you do to help the bees?

• Urge your Congress representative to pass the Pollinator Recovery Act and to protect the Endangered Species Act.
• Support a ban on the use of pesticides, especially neonicotinoid pesticides.
• Learn how to go green, protect the environment and fight global warming
• Become a beekeeper and plant a bee-friendly garden.

For more information on local beekeeping please visit Forsyth Beekeepers Club or Georgia Beekeepers Association