Promoted
Precious pollinator
The European native, Apis mellifera busy working on aloe flowers.
Originating from the northern hemisphere, this species has no problem dealing with the cooler temperatures at this location. After all, our winter temperatures are often the same as summer days in Europe! Consequently, they are very much active all year and compete with native bees.
Apis mellifera has been present here in Australia since around 1830, introduced by European settlers. These bees visit the flowers of at least 200 Australian plant genera.
15 mm body length.
The western honey bee or European honey bee is the most common of the 7–12 species of honey bee worldwide. The genus name "Apis" is Latin for "bee", and "mellifera" is the Latin for "honey-bearing", referring to the species' production of honey.
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There are 20,000 different species of bees! They come in different sizes, colors, and have varying degrees of fuzziness. Some dance, many never sting, and a few make honey. One thing is certain among all this variability: bees are fantastic and are among the heroes in nature!
One obvious reason for their superstardom is because they pollinate an enormous variety of plants. Globally, the food production that relies on pollinators is worth over $500 billion per year! And, when bees are involved in pollination, crop quality and yield improves by 71%. We can thank bees for the fruits and vegetables that we eat, the flowers we enjoy, and the crops we grow to feed livestock. They play a significant role in nature and in our lives. Bees help ensure food security and quality, sustainable agriculture, and biodiversity. What’s not to love?!
Bees are in trouble. The number of pollinators around the world is decreasing to a crisis level. Habitat loss, invasive plants, climate change, pesticides, mites, and disease are ravaging wild and domesticated bee populations. Bees are adaptable creatures, but they are facing more than they bear. There is hope, however! With education, conservation efforts, and research, it’s not too late for the bees….and, subsequently for us as well.
Today is World Bee Day! It's a day to raise awareness to the importance of bees and promote opportunities to protect pollinators and their habitats. Let’s encourage sustainable practices so that bees can thrive! {Apis mellifera photographed by Ruth Spigelman in NSW, Australia} #JungleDragon #WorldBeeDay
https://www.facebook.com/jungledragonwildlife/ Posted 5 years ago
Today’s Day 2 of our unusual ‘creature feature’ week! #JungleDragon
Check out our list to see more:
POLLEN BASKETS
Honey bees don’t merely move pollen between plants. They also collect pollen to bring back to their hives for food. To carry the pollen, they have special structures on their hind legs called pollen baskets (or corbiculae). Pollen baskets are basically just smooth cavities that are surrounded by hairs. The pollen is held in the baskets by a single hair that the bee moistens with honey to ensure stickiness! {Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) spotted in Australia by Ruth Spigelman} #Pollenbaskets #Corbiculae #Apismellifera
https://www.facebook.com/jungledragonwildlife Posted 4 years ago