#theBeeAt3
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 211

The central place foraging behaviour of #bumblebees requires that they have cognitive capacities such as navigation, memory and learning.
Anything which impairs these capabilities will impact upon the health of the colony.
#bees

#nature
#science
November 11, 2025 at 2:35 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 210

Bumblebees are central place foragers - they locate floral resources, fly to them as efficiently as possible, determine the most rewarding flowers, memorise their location, return food to the nest and then remember/repeat!
#bees
#nature
#science
November 10, 2025 at 1:44 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 209
# 208 contd

Bumblebee v Honeybee

When searching for a specific ‘target’ #bumblebees are slower but more accurate than #honeybees which are faster/more impulsive and make more errors. Bumblebees sacrifice speed for accuracy.
#bees
#nature
#facts
November 7, 2025 at 8:05 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 208

Bumblebee v Honeybee
The series continues.

Research found that when searching for a ‘target’ (eg a specific flower) #honeybees and #bumblebees employ different speed-accuracy trade-off strategies!
To bee 😞🙄continued.
#bees
#nature
#environment
November 6, 2025 at 1:25 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 207

Once more with the #bumblebee v #honeybee theme:

Bumblebees employ a neat trick called ‘buzz pollination’ to dislodge hard to access pollen in certain flowers.
Honey bees don’t got this move in their repertoire!
#bees

#nature
#environment
November 5, 2025 at 2:49 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 206

Again the #bumblebee v #honeybee theme:

Bumblebee eyes allow higher spatial resolution in vision than honey bee eyes so details are clearer, however, honey bees have better colour discrimination abilities than bumbles.
#bees
November 4, 2025 at 2:50 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 205

Continuing the bumblebee v #honeybee theme:

Whereas honey bee hive/colony tasks are ‘assigned’ by AGE of the bee, bumblebee nest tasks are related to the SIZE of the individual bee rather than the age.

#bees
#bumblebees
#nature
#environment
🐝🌍
November 3, 2025 at 1:18 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 204

Continuing the bumblebee v #honeybee theme:

The annual colonies of #bumblebees are substantially smaller than those of honeybees.

Bumblebee nests house at most a few hundred bees. Honey bee hives house tens of thousands.
#bees
#nature
🐝🌍
November 2, 2025 at 2:19 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 203

The evolutionary lines leading to today’s bumblebee and honey bee species have their origins in very different environments - #bumblebees in the northern temperate zone, #honeybees in the tropics and subtropics.
#bees
#nature
#science
#insects
🐝🌍
November 1, 2025 at 2:48 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 202

When foraging, bumblebees can make up to 1000 flower visits in a single hour. One thousand!
To do this the ability to control flight to enable them to land precisely and quickly is essential.
#bees
#bumblebees
#nature
#science
#insects
🐝🌍
October 31, 2025 at 9:49 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 201

Research found that synthetic fertilisers and pesticides sprayed on flowers alter the electric field around these flowers.
Bumblebees/pollinators detect this change and may be less likely to land on these flowers to forage.
#bees
#nature
#science
October 30, 2025 at 2:01 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 200

#Bumblebees make use of various floral ‘cues’ when interpreting if a flower is attractive/useful to them as a source of forage.
These cues include scent, colour and the electric field of the flower.
#bees
#nature
#environment
#worldbeesanctuary
🐝🌍
October 29, 2025 at 3:07 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 199

Intensive agriculture causing a lack of mid/late season floral resources may be putting pressure on early emerging #bumblebee species to start colonies even earlier to ensure reproduction before forage resources decline.
#bees
#nature
#science
🐝🌍
October 28, 2025 at 2:57 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 198

A study in Sweden found that the flight period of #bumblebees there advanced by 5 days over the last 20 years.
In one area where agriculture is the main land use spring queen activity advanced by 14 days over 100 years.
#bees

#nature
#science
🐝🌍
October 25, 2025 at 2:00 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 197

Larger sized #bumblebees are capable of travelling further from the nest to forage and explore for #flowers.
These big #bees are also able to transport larger loads of #pollen and #nectar than their smaller sized sisters.

#nature
#environment
🐝🌍
October 24, 2025 at 1:42 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 196

A study found that bigger #bumblebees put extra effort into learning the location of flowers with richer nectar.
But smaller bumblebees made no extra effort to learn the location of flowers regardless of nectar quality.
#bees
#nature
#science
🐝🌍
October 23, 2025 at 2:19 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 195

Bees perform ‘learning flights’ when leaving flowers looking back repeatedly to memorise the location of the flower.
Bumblebees are selective about which flowers they prefer and put more effort into remembering these flowers.
#bees
#bumblebees
🐝🌍
October 22, 2025 at 11:25 AM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 194

Sticking with the #bumblebees flying in low light theme:
More ‘experienced’ bumblebees with more air miles on the clock are more likely to forage in low light. Knowledge of food locations possibly aiding safe navigation.
#bees
#nature
#science
🐝🌍
October 21, 2025 at 1:15 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 193

Observation suggests that #bumblebees fly more slowly and indeed land more slowly in low light conditions compared to flight in bright light.
Their flight paths to destinations are also less direct and more meandering.
#bees
#nature
#science
🐝🌍
October 20, 2025 at 2:33 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 192

Bigger #bumblebees are more likely to go out foraging in low light such as dawn.
Why?
They have bigger eyes than smaller sister workers in the colony, and indeed other species of #bees, allowing them to see better in dim light.
#nature
#insects
🐝🌍
October 17, 2025 at 1:08 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 191

Despite having 5 ‘eyes’ 2 of which are fairly big #bumblebees have poor vision in low light.
Flying at dawn/dusk means less competition and more foraging time but also more risk of becoming lost/being eaten by predators.
#bees
#nature
#science
October 14, 2025 at 1:44 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 190

The rarer species of bee, often specialists, are more likely to be threatened with extinction from loss of habitat, poisoning and now climate breakdown.
Their importance to plant diversity should not be underestimated.
#bees
#nature
#environment
October 13, 2025 at 3:44 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 189

An entire #meadow community of flowers relies on 2.5 to 7.5 times more bee species for #pollination than single/crop plant species and locally rare species account for up to 1/4 of the important pollinator species.
#bees
#nature
#environment
🐝🌍
October 11, 2025 at 12:34 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 188

Research indicates that the more plant species there are in a meadow, the more bee species are needed for pollination.
‘Rare species’ #bees often forage on and pollinate plants that the more common species of bees don’t.
#bumblebees
#nature
🐝🌍
October 10, 2025 at 2:02 PM
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.

# 187

Middle Eastern poppies reflect no UV light.
The same species in Europe do.
European poppies are pollinated by #bees who can’t see red very well but can see UV light.
Middle Eastern poppies are pollinated by beetles that do see red.
#nature
🐝🌍
October 9, 2025 at 2:01 PM