Feral honey bees pose threat to endangered seabirds. Bees and birds are the secret to better coffee. Native parasite thrives alongside its bee host.
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Conservation
Photo: Andre Raine
Feral honey bees pose a new threat to endangered seabirds
(Audubon) On the Hawaiian island of Kaua‘i, the invasive bees can cause nest abandonment and even kill chicks when they invade burrows.
Climate warming changes synchrony of plants and pollinators
(Twitter, Oliver Bossdorf @OBossdorf) “We used @GBIF data to analyse temp trends in occurrence of plants & pollinators in Germany. Many groups shifted towards earlier occurrence, and shifts were related to climate warming. As plants shifted fastest, this resulted in synchrony changes of plant-pollinator interactions.” Original paper
Rare butterfly, thought to be extinct in Canada, making a comeback on Vancouver Island
(Times Colonist) The Taylor’s checkerspot, with its exquisite black, orange and white patterns, was once living in Greater Victoria and north to Hornby, with pockets of the butterflies in coastal regions of Oregon and Washington in the U.S. But the populations of Taylor’s checkerspots on the island were believed to be extirpated from Canada in 1990 when intensive searches of its key habitat areas revealed no signs of them. However, small groups of Taylor checkerspots were discovered on Denman Island in 2005 and in a rural area south of Campbell River in 2018, which has spurred a massive re-introduction effort on Hornby.
Discovery of rare orchid halts $10 million funeral home development in Australia
(ABC News) The funeral home has withdrawn its proposal after 101 leafless tongue orchids were found on the 60-acre property on the New South Wales South Coast. A citizen scientist said he made the discovery despite paid environmental consultants deeming the land free of the threatened flora. “We went on a walk, we found it and various clusters.”
Herbicide drift: How to monitor and report damage to wild plants
(Xerces Society) Over the past five years, many trees and broadleaf plants in backyards, on farms, and in natural areas across the Midwest have been injured by drift from herbicides such as dicamba and 2,4-D. These herbicides can volatilize (turn from liquid to gas) and move off-site in the warmer air temperatures later in spring and early summer. Herbicide drift damage can occur hundreds of yards outside of the crop fields where these chemicals are applied, threatening the health of vulnerable crops and wild plants, as well as the pollinators and other wildlife that depend on those plants for food and shelter. As you watch backyard plants and trees green up and leaf out, it’s also time to start observing those plants for symptoms of injury from herbicide drift.
Economics
Photo: Gund Institute for the Environment
The secret to better coffee? The birds and the bees.
(ScienceDaily, University of Vermont) A groundbreaking study reveals that without birds and bees working together, some traveling thousands of miles, coffee farmers would see a whopping 25% drop in crop yields. The study is also the first to show, with real-world experiments, that the contributions of nature are larger when combined than their individual contributions. This suggests researchers may be underestimating how much the environment benefits society.
Managed honey bees decrease pollination limitation in some crops
(Twitter, McArt Lab @McArtLab) “Wow. Across 30 crops at real farms, a 34% increase in yield via supplemental pollination. An incredible amount of profit that farmers are currently missing out on!” Original paper
These stingless bees make medicinal honey. Some call it a ‘miracle liquid’.
(National Geographic) In the Peruvian Amazon, people are just beginning to raise a few of the area’s 175 different species of stingless bees, which promise to help beekeepers and their communities. Historically, such honey has typically been harvested from the wild, which destroys the hives. But in the last few years, scientists are teaching people to raise and keep the bees in sustainable ways.
Selective breeding sustainably protects honey bees from Varroa mite
(Phys.org, University of Exeter) A new breed of honey bees provides a major advance in the global fight against the parasitic varroa mite, new research shows. “Pol-line” bees, bred for resistance to the mite in a rigorous 20-year breeding program, were trialed alongside a standard variety in a large-scale pollination operation. The mite-resistant bees were more than twice as likely to survive the winter.
Stung by drought, Morocco’s bees face disaster
(Phys.org) The North African kingdom has seen a dramatic spike in mass die-offs of the critical pollinators, a phenomenon called “colony collapse disorder”. Worldwide, experts say such sudden mass deaths of bees are often linked to the destruction of nature and the rampant use of pesticides. But authorities in Morocco say these collapses are caused by the worst drought to hit the country in 40 years, which has decimated the plants on which bees rely for food.
(BioQuip) “A unique opportunity to own a very large collection of preserved insects and other arthropods representing 30+ orders from around the world.”
Policy/Law
Photo: beespeaker, iNaturalist
140 groups call for major reforms at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore scientific integrity
(Center for Biological Diversity) The Center for Biological Diversity and 139 other organizations sent a letter urging U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams to take immediate action to reform the agency’s process for listing imperiled species as threatened or endangered. More than 300 animals and plants are still awaiting protection decisions — including the western bumble bee — while hundreds more imperiled species are not even under consideration. On average, the agency has taken 12 years to protect species even though under the Endangered Species Act, it should take no more than two. Nearly 50 unlisted species have gone extinct waiting for protection.
Michigan city promoting No Mow May to help save bees, other pollinators
(MLive) The Ann Arbor City Council voted unanimously this week to endorse the No Mow May initiative, encouraging property owners across the city to refrain from mowing lawns through May, recognizing that dandelions and other wildflowers, including the prolific crocus, can be a vital early food source for pollinators after a long winter.
Biden administration will pay farmers more money to take land out of production
(The Counter) The Biden administration announced that it would expand a program that pays farmers to leave land fallow, part of a broader, government-wide effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030.
Science
Photo: Flinders University
Native parasite thrives alongside its bee host
(Phys.org, Flinders University) Like disease in humans, parasites can wage a deadly evolutionary “arms race” against their hosts, even driving small populations to extinction if they mutate more quickly and gain the upper hand. Now a new study describes how Australian native parasite bee populations have been able to compete in a race with their adaptive social hosts by evolving at similar rates.
Parasites are going extinct. Here’s why we need to save them.
(National Geographic) Nearly half of all known animals on Earth are parasites, and according to one study, a tenth of them may already be doomed to extinction in the next 50 years due to climate change, loss of their hosts, and deliberate attempts at eradication. But right now it seems few people care – or even notice. Of the more than 37,000 species flagged as critically endangered on the IUCN red list, only one louse and some freshwater mussels are parasites.
Honey bee parasites have record-breaking clinginess
(Scientific American) To wrangle a ride on their honey bee hosts, wingless parasitic flies need a truly phenomenal grasp. Now a new study reveals how Braula coeca manages to walk around on a flying bee while exhibiting what researchers say is the highest attachment force per body weight of any land-based insect ever measured.
More size variation in bumble bee workers and in the wild
(Twitter, Dr Anna Dornhaus @dornhaus) “Bumble bee workers, full ‘super’ sisters, can vary hugely in size bc of differential feeding of larvae. Why? Here we show that this appears to be a trait specifically evolved for workers (not queens/males), and occurs in the field” Original paper
Climate change has caused Britain’s butterflies to get bigger
(National History Museum) In response to a warming world, many species are physically changing their body sizes. While for some this means getting smaller to cope with extreme temperatures, for insects the response is more varied. New research using computer vision to analyze tens of thousands of butterfly specimens has found that some British butterflies are steadily getting bigger in response to climate change.
Anther cones increase pollen release in buzz-pollinated Solanum flowers
(Twitter, Mario Vallejo-Marin @nicrodemo) “Using a bit of glue to create anther cones in Solanum flowers, and lasers to measure vibrations, we show that cones increase vibration transmission and pollen release in these buzz pollinated flowers.” Original paper
Society/Culture
Big Agriculture is printing children’s books that say pesticides are great
(Vice) A publishing company linked to the most powerful agricultural lobby group in the U.S. is releasing children’s books extolling the benefits of pesticides and nitrogen fertilizers.
Entomology graduate stipends fail to cover necessities
(Twitter, Michelle Kirchner @mkirchner_ants) “We put a great deal of effort into this and hope that it encourages #entomology departments around the country to raise grad student #stipends to a living wage.” Original paper
(Twitter, Harry Siviter @harrysiviter) “New book for the little man courtesy of @felicitymuth. Am I Even A Bee follows one bee’s journey of self discovery. Technically for children but I’d also recommend for adults”
One More Thing…
“‘I hate #Orchid #Bees!’ ... said no one ever.” From Silas Bossert @thecriticalbee via Twitter.