Tag: Bumbble bees

Bees get hooked on harmful pesticide: study

PARIS, France (AFP) — Bumblebees acquire a taste for food laced with a pesticide known to harm them, according to a study suggesting the chemicals pose an even greater threat to pollinators than previously thought. In experiments, researchers showed that bees initially put off by sugar water containing neonicotinoids — the most widely-used class of insecticide worldwide — soon started seeking them out to the exclusion of untainted food. The findings were published Wednesday in […]

Bumblebees have smelly feet to help them eat: study

by Mariëtte Le Roux Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Bumblebees have smelly feet, scientists revealed on Tuesday. Moreover, the odour in their tiny footprints is so potent that other bees can detect it hours after they had visited a flower, a team wrote in the journal Scientific Reports. Adding to the intrigue, experiments showed that bumblebees can distinguish the smell of their own feet from those of other bees. “This is the first […]