Tag Archives: bee

The complex regulation and functional significance of size diversity in social bees

AoS. The complex regulation and functional significance of size diversity in social bees

Across animals, variation in body size is often influenced by environmental conditions and is considered to have adaptive value. In bees, in which many species show various degrees of sociality, body size may also be associated with

The year of the honey bee with respect to its physiology and immunity

It has been known for many years that in temperate climates, the European honey bee, Apis mellifera, exists in the form of two distinct populations within the year, short-living summer bees and long-living winter bees. Summer populations’

Invasive bumblebees become quickly the most important pollinators in their new habitats

Invasive species have been largely described as one of the main threats to global biodiversity. The European bumblebee Bombus terrestris was intentionally introduced in Chile in 1997 to be used as pollinator in greenhouse tomato crops because

He’s giving me good vibrations – the role of vibrations in population divergence in the red mason bee

Females in the animal kingdom are often known to be the choosier sex when it comes to finding the right mating partner. Consequently, differences in female preference for certain male characteristics can be a driving force for

The origin and evolution of fertility-linked signals in bees

Bees, ants and wasps comprise a biological group named Hymenoptera. In the species of this group, various levels of social organization can be found – from solitary individuals to highly complex social societies. An important characteristic of

Neonicotinoid insecticides in the honey bee and bee products from hives in central Saskatchewan

There have been a lot of news reports regarding the neonicotinoid insecticides, (NIs) their use and the effects that these may have on the European Honey Bee, (Apis Melifera). The prairies of Canada is one of the

Mason bees lose their ways after drinking the pesticide Clothianidin

Pesticides are widely used in modern agriculture to protect field crops, but are suspected to harm pollinating insects. In December 2013, the European Commission imposed a moratorium of using three neonicotinoid insecticides (imidacloprid, clothianidin and thiamethoxam) for

Bees get their ‘fix’ in virtual reality

How does a small insect, with its tiny eyes and brain, see the world it moves through? Obviously an insect can’t answer our question directly, so scientists have developed other means to uncover the answers. One approach