Bee Birds Import Ban: Understanding the Science Behind Hawaii's Regulation
Photo: manfredrichter on Pixabay

Bee Birds Import Ban: Understanding the Science Behind Hawaii's Regulation

June 1, 2023

Hummingbirds do not live in Hawaii and are prohibited from being imported or brought into the state. In this article, we will discuss the reasons why.

Photo: DEZALB on Pixabay

What is a specialty of Hawaii? Yes, Pineapple. Today's fruits are seedless: seedless grapes, seedless oranges, etc. Seedless pineapples are also popular (or perhaps most of us have only ever eaten seedless pineapples). If a pineapple has seeds, it loses its quality as a product.Seedless pineapples are increased by cutting off the shoots of the pineapple tree and planting them like seedlings.

Hummingbirds are cute and beautiful birds about the size of a sparrow. Their special skill is to flap their wings and stay perched in the air while sucking nectar from flowers. Hummingbirds love the nectar of pineapple flowers. The pineapple flowers grow into the pineapple fruit we see so often.

In nature, hummingbirds fly from one pineapple blossom to another, sucking the nectar and thereby helping to pollinate the pineapples, but in a human-controlled environment, this can backfire.

Photo: James Wainscoat on Unsplash

If there were hummingbirds in Hawaii where people intentionally make pineapples not pollinating, the seedless pineapples they were making would be pollinated and become seeded pineapples.

Therefore, in Hawaii, where pineapple is a major export crop, hummingbirds are prohibited from bringing into the country to prevent pineapples from pollinating each other.

Even in Hawaii, where pineapples are thoroughly prevented from being pollinated, bees sometimes carry pollen from different varieties of pineapples from other farms, causing pollination to occur. When this happens, brown sesame-like seeds are produced in the area between the skin and the pulp. Of course, if you sow them in the soil, they will germinate. Next time you buy a whole pineapple and cut it into pieces, why not look for the seeds?

References

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