bees

The humble bumblebee is proof that brain size isn't everything.This little insect with its wee, seed-sized brain has shown a level of collective intelligence in experiments that scientists thought was wholly unique to humans.When trained in the lab to open a two-step puzzle box, bumblebees of the species Bombus terrestris could teach the solution to another bee that had never seen the box before. This naive bee would not have solved the puzzle on its own. To teach the 'demonstrator' bees the non-intuitive solution in the…

Hylaeus navai female. Found on the Viti Levu and Taveuni islands of Fiji, this species is still only known from the females, but is named in honor of Navai Village and their long-term support of Fijian bee research. Credit: James Dorey PhotographyScientists have discovered a previously unknown species radiation of masked bees, which is restricted to the tree canopies of Pacific islands.In 1934, Elwood Zimmerman, an American entomologist who was an undergraduate at Berkeley at the time, took part in the ‘Mangarevan…

Lake Tagimoucia as seen from Des Voeux Peak on Taveuni, Fiji. Both the lake and the peak have been the sites where new species were found. The Peak in particular is where the first Fijian Hylaeus were collected for this project. Credit: James Dorey PhotographyRecent scientific research conducted by Flinders University has led to the discovery of eight new bee species in the Pacific and has provided fresh insights into the behavior of birds in Fiji on Viti Levu Island.The studies, both funded by fieldwork supported by the…

Photo: Argonne National Laboratory A five-year study of solar farms planted with wildflowers and native grasses discovered that native bees showed a 20-fold increase in numbers. Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory wanted to understand how insect pollinators respond to utility solar farms planted with native grasses and wildflowers. They conducted the five-year field study because, surprisingly, there had…

A study has shown that bees synthesize specific nutrients to support the colonization of their gut bacteria. This discovery, made using the western honey bee as a model and advanced NanoSIMS technology, offers new insights into the symbiotic relationship between hosts and their gut microbiota.New research reveals that bees produce nutrients that aid in the colonization of their gut bacteria, highlighting a symbiotic host-microbiota relationship and offering insights into bees’ environmental vulnerabilities.Bacteria have…

X-ray micro-CT of a male Eucera inside its nest. Credit: Fernando MuñizFernando Muñiz, a research academic from the University of Seville, participates in a discovery that represents a unique opportunity in the fight against climate change.The discovery, with the active participation of Fernando Muñiz, professor of the Department of Crystallography, Mineralogy and Agricultural Chemistry at the University of Seville, was recently published in the international journal Papers in Palaeontology, under the title “Eucera bees…

A new study at the University of Leeds indicates that traditional beekeeping hives may be causing thermal stress to bees by increasing heat loss. His findings challenge the accepted theory of bee clustering for insulation, suggesting an urgent need to revise beekeeping practices for better bee welfare.Honeybees do not naturally insulate their colonies against the cold, according to new research by the University of Leeds.The results of the study carried out by Derek Mitchell, a PhD student at the University of Leeds’…

A Royal Australian Mint 2022 two-dollar coin representing 200 years since the introduction of the honeybee to Australia. In 2022, the Royal Australian Mint issued a $2 coin decorated with honeybees. Around 2,400 years earlier, a mint in the kingdom of Macedon had the same idea, creating a silver obol coin with a bee stamped on one side. …

In 2022, the Royal Australian Mint issued a $2 coin decorated with honeybees. Around 2,400 years earlier, a mint in the kingdom of Macedon had the same idea, creating a silver obol coin with a bee stamped on one side.Over the centuries between these two events, currency demonstrating a symbolic link between honey and money is surprisingly common.In a recent study in Australian Coin Review, I trace the bee through numismatic history – and suggest a scientific reason why our brains might naturally draw a connection between…

In vertical farming operations, artificial lights and artificial intelligence coax plants, stacked densely on towering shelves rather than spread over a field, to grow indoors with minimal human intervention. That’s the goal. But despite lofty promises of bringing fresh produce to local markets, these systems have not yet provided a climate-friendly way to feed the world’s growing population. Can robotic “bees,” a buzzy technology straight out of science fiction, rescue these high-tech operations? The world’s first…