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Tiny backpack for bees can track their position and temperature

1 June 2023

A sensor around a millimetre in size has been tested to monitor a honeybee flying around some flowers. It could also work for medical monitoring inside a person's body

Electromagnetic fields from power lines are messing with honeybees

12 May 2023

Transmission towers emit electromagnetic fields that can disrupt honeybees’ ability to pollinate nearby plants, which could reduce biodiversity in these areas

Male orchid bees craft unique perfumes from flowers – now we know why

12 April 2023

The function of the mysterious perfume blended by male orchid bees from the flowers they visit has finally been figured out

Honeybees benefit from strips of native plants embedded in farmland

2 April 2023

Prairie strips, areas of wild vegetation within intensive farms, are associated with bee colonies collecting more pollen, growing larger and having better winter survival rates

Rise in urban beekeeping may be crowding out native bee species

15 February 2023

In Montreal, Canada, the diversity of wild bee species has fallen in areas where honeybee colonies have proliferated

Shortage of pollinators could be killing 427,000 people a year

21 December 2022

Inadequate numbers of bees and other pollinators have a huge impact on human health due to lower production of fruit and vegetables, according to a modelling study

Honeybees are living half as long as they were 50 years ago

14 November 2022

The lifespan of bees raised in US laboratories is half what it was in the 1970s, suggesting there may be a genetic reason behind increasing rates of colony collapse

Honeybee swarms generate more electricity per metre than a storm cloud

24 October 2022

Swarms of western honeybees can generate an electric charge of 1000 volts per metre, a voltage density greater than thunderstorm clouds and electrified dust storms

Bees exposed to more toxic pesticides despite overall use falling

1 April 2021

Bees and other pollinators in the US, and probably other countries, have been exposed to growing levels of toxicity from pesticides over 25 years, despite the amount used falling at the same time