High-Speed Video Reveals Bumblebees Carry Heavy Loads in Energy-Efficient “Economy Mode”
Bumblebees are the big lifters of the insect world, able to fly back to the hive with almost their own bodyweight in nectar on board….
Bees News
Scientists Genetically Engineered Bacteria to Protect Bees From Colony Collapse
Scientists from The University of Texas at Austin report in the journal Science that they have developed a new strategy to protect honey bees from…
Surprisingly, Plants Are Better Pollinated in Cities Than in the Countryside
Plants Benefit From More Bees, Especially Bumble Bees Flowering plants are better pollinated in urban than in rural areas. This has now been demonstrated experimentally…
Bumble Bees’ Favorite Flowers Identified to Aid Bee Restoration
Research in the Sierra Nevada region of California illustrates the varying flower choices of bumble bees. Many species of North American bumble bees have seen…
Bad News for Honey Bees: Insecticides Are Growing Much More Toxic
Researchers discover that neonicotinoid seed treatments are driving a dramatic increase in insecticide toxicity in U.S. agricultural landscapes, despite evidence that these treatments have little…
Researchers Abuzz About High Levels of Antibacterial Activity in Australian Honey
Australia has at least seven Leptospermum species that produce honey with exceptionally high levels of antibacterial activity. Australian honey is abuzz with high-value antibacterial activity,…
Bizarre Species of Stingless Bees Depend on a Complex Fungal Community to Survive
A report published in PLOS ONE describes key roles of various microorganisms in the development of the larvae of Scaptotrigona depilis. Researchers warn that this…
Honeybees Are Accomplished Mathematicians
Start thinking about numbers and they can become large very quickly. The diameter of the universe is about 8.8×1023 km and the largest number with…
Colorful New Bee Species Discovered in Fiji, but Extinction From Climate Change Feared
Bee biodiversity barometer on Fiji — New species described as environment changes The biodiversity buzz is alive and well in Fiji, but climate change, noxious…
Male Honeybees Inject Queens With Blinding Toxins During Sex
They say love is blind, but if you’re a queen honeybee it could mean true loss of sight. New research finds male honeybees inject toxins…
Researchers Developing Natural Pesticide Alternative That Doesn’t Harm Honeybees
Researchers at the University of Sheffield’s Institute for Sustainable Food are collaborating with industry to develop a natural, sustainable biocontrol which targets pests without harming…
Scientists Study “Magical” Royal Jelly for Clues to Control Cancer
Royal jelly, or milky-white “bee milk,” has long been known for its mysterious growth effects on future queen honey bees, while also hailed by some…
Yale Study Links Climate Change to the Decline of Bumblebee Species
A newly published study from Yale University links climate change to the decline of bumblebee species in North America and Europe. The study, published in…
Study Shows That Bees and Flowers Communicate Using Electrical Fields
Scientists from the University of Bristol have discovered that flowers use patterns of electrical signals in concert with the flower’s other attractive signals to enhance…
Honeybees Have a Bite That Stuns
Honeybees are well known for their sting, but scientists have discovered that they also have a bite that stuns. Bees resort to biting when faced…
Antibiotics Might Contribute to the Health Problems of the Bee Colonies
A new study from Yale University shows that eight beneficial gut bacteria common in honeybees and bumblebees have acquired genes that make them resistant to…
Common Pesticides Are Severely Affecting Bees
Bees are the world’s most important pollinators, and without them, the planet would quickly go hungry. All over the world, their populations are quickly decreasing,…
French Bees Producing Blue and Green Honey Due to Unusual Taste Preference
Bees in a cluster of beehives in northeastern France have been making honey in shades of blue and green, alarming beekeepers and leaving scientists to…
