Bee diversity and richness decline as anthropogenic activity increases, scientists confirm

March 24, 2019

Changes in land use negatively affect bee species richness and diversity, and cause major shifts in species composition, reports a recent study of native wild bees, conducted at the Sierra de Quila Flora and Fauna Protection Area and its influence zone in Mexico. Having registered a total of 14,054 individual bees representing 160 species, 52 … More Bee diversity and richness decline as anthropogenic activity increases, scientists confirm

Think about bees, say researchers, as Grand-Staircase Escalante National Monument Shrinks

March 17, 2019

Monument’s original boundaries are a hotspot of pollinator biodiversity. The state of Utah’s nickname is “The Beehive State,” and the moniker couldn’t be more apt, say Utah State University scientists. One out of every four bee species in the United States is found In Utah and the arid, western state is home to more bee … More Think about bees, say researchers, as Grand-Staircase Escalante National Monument Shrinks

Harnessing the Power of Vaccines to Benefit Bees

March 9, 2019

Vaccines are one of humanity’s greatest medical breakthroughs—ridding the world of smallpox, limiting outbreaks of mumps and measles and putting polio on the ropes. Now, reports Bill Chapell at NPR, researchers are hoping to harness the power of vaccines for the first time to help honeybees, which are currently being bombarded by a long list of threats. … More Harnessing the Power of Vaccines to Benefit Bees

Bees on the brink

February 23, 2019

Pesticide exposure can dramatically impact bees’ social behaviors, study shows, For bees, being social is everything. Whether it’s foraging for food, caring for the young, using their bodies to generate heat or to fan the nest, or building and repairing nests, a bee colony does just about everything as a single unit. While recent studies … More Bees on the brink

In the absence of bees, flies are responsible for pollination in the Arctic region.

February 16, 2019

Most of the fauna in the Arctic region take part in pollinating, yet during the busiest flowering weeks, there’s a shortage of such services. A recent study indicates that the pollination services provided to plants and, thus, the plants’ ability to produce seeds are dependent on the timing of the blooming season, and on how … More In the absence of bees, flies are responsible for pollination in the Arctic region.

Common pesticide damages honey bees’ ability to fly

February 8, 2019

A honey bee (Apis mellifera) is harnessed for study on a flight mill in biology professor James Nieh’s laboratory, UC San Diego. Credit: Simone Tosi, UC San Diego Biologists at the University of California San Diego have demonstrated for the first time that a widely used pesticide can significantly impair the ability of otherwise healthy … More Common pesticide damages honey bees’ ability to fly