Hive and Seek: Domestic Honeybees Keep Disappearing, but Are Their Wild Cousins in Trouble, Too? [Slide Show]
Is colony collapse disorder just the visible part of a "global pollinator crisis"? The answer is surprisingly murky. To help answer the question, scientists have created an inexpensive, nationwide wild bee monitoring program
![Hive and Seek: Domestic Honeybees Keep Disappearing, but Are Their Wild Cousins in Trouble, Too? [Slide Show]](https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/F51F68FD-EEA0-430E-AB9DF2B8B12CB22C.jpg?w=590&h=393)
Hive and Seek: Domestic Honeybees Keep Disappearing, but Are Their Wild Cousins in Trouble, Too? [Slide Show]
- 13. Squash Bees These bees rely on plants in the squash family (including pumpkins, watermelons and gourds) for several parts of their life cycle. Squash flowers provide Peponapis mating territories, sleeping places for males, and pollen and nectar for young. Some species have expanded their ranges to follow the agricultural propagation of squash plants. Peponapis pruinosa, from the Packer Collection at York University
- 11. Masked Bees A Hylaeus bee does not carry pollen or nectar externally, as other bees do; instead, it hides it in its crop. The only genus of bees native to Hawaii, they also turn up in other parts of North America. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation lists 18 Hylaeus species as "critically imperiled"; seven of them bear the label "critically imperiled and possibly extinct." Hylaeus ornatus, from the USGS Native Bee Inventory and Monitoring Laboratory
- 09. Carpenters These bees bore into wood to create nests. In some species of small carpenter bees (Ceratina), daughters or sisters may cooperate to raise the next generation. The genus contains a few unusual species that can reproduce without males in a process called parthenogenesis. Large carpenters (Xylocopa) lay fewer eggs than other bees, but their eggs are the largest of any insect—at 1.5 centimeters in diameter, each one is half the size of the adult bee. Ceratina calcarata, from the Packer Collection at York University
- 07. Bumble Bees The buzz of these insects vibrates flowers into releasing their pollen. Bumblebees are one of a handful of native bees that form colonies, boast a queen and can grow to populations numbering around a thousand. Several species are in decline and one, Bombus franklini, is listed as a "species of concern" by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Bombus andersoni, by Graham Snodgrass
- 06. Honey Bees Honeybees (Apis mellifera) pollinate crops commercially. Populations have tanked for decades, causing much concern for this exotic species. An import from Europe, they often cannot pollinate as efficiently as native New World bees. Because they live in large colonies, honeybees are more manageable in apiaries than are native species, which tend to be solitary. Packer Collection at York University
- 04. Miners Anthophora bees dig tunnels in soil. Some species' tongues can extend up to 2.5 centimeters in length, longer than the rest of their bodies, allowing them to pollinate deep flowers. In some species, several males snooze on the same flower, clasping the plant with their jaws. Anthrophora bomboides, from the Packer Collection at York University
- 03. Sweat Bees Human sweat is nectar for sweat bees, and they slurp it up for its salt content. Agapostemon sweat bees show off their flashy green and blue colors. Some species nest communally: up to 24 females will share a nest but raise their offspring independently. Some Lassioglossum sweat bees line their nest entrances with lactone secretions. Each individual has its own chemical signature that helps it to recognize its nest when returning from foraging. Agapostemon virescens, from the Packer Collection at York University
- 02. Cuckoos Several bee genera—including Nomada, Sphecodes and Coelixys—are klepto-parasites, more alluringly known as "cuckoo bees." Instead of collecting pollen to provide for their young, cuckoos lay their eggs in other bees' nests. Once hatched, cuckoo larvae kill the hosts' young and eat their provisions. Sphecodes clematidis, from the Packer Collection at York University
