Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 110
10 million acres of sunflowers are grown annually in Europe (2 million acres in the US).
A study involving 2 species of bee shows that sunflower pollen in the diet has medicinal and protective effects on health of the #bees.
#nature
#sunflowers 
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 109
# 108 contd.
#Bees fly using the indirect flight mechanism - no muscles are attached directly to the wings.
Muscles are attached to the walls of the thorax and contractions distort the thorax causing the wings to move.
#bumblebees
#nature
Late?
And how!
This is actually Thursday’s fact…apologies for any inconvenience folks.
In my defence…
…no…
…I’ve got nothing…
…hang on…
…I remember now…
…I…
…nope…
…nothing…
…zip…
…zero…
…nada…
…it just is what it is…
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 107
Although it may appear that #bumblebees have only two wings they actually have four.
The smaller rear wings are attached to the larger front wings by ‘hooks’.
Bumblebee wings are part of the exoskeleton.
#bees
#science
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 106
Bumblebees could pollinate in greenhouses in #space.
Research to test if #bees function at low atmospheric pressure show honeybees can’t fly below 66.5kPa. Yet down at 52kPa plants will grow and #bumblebees will pollinate.
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 105
Research indicates that #weather influences whether #bees forage for #pollen or #nectar.
#bumblebees seem to have a preference for pollen collection when it is warm/windy and importantly when humidity is low.
#nature
#pollinators
#wildflowers
#thistle
There’s that Bush Vetch again!
With a little hint of ‘buzz pollination’ thrown in for good measure (the high pitched buzz).
Bumbles, #wildflowers and a wee bit of magical bee ingenuity.
Good for the soul.
#nature
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 104
When there is an influx of nectar into the #bumblebee nest more worker #bees are deployed to #forage. The higher the quality of the #nectar arriving and the emptier the honeypots the greater the number of activated foragers.
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 103
Unlike honey bees #bumblebees do not produce and store large supplies of honey but rather keep small quantities of #nectar to feed on in the nest in ‘honeypots’ constructed from a mixture of secreted wax and pollen.
#bees
#pollinators
#nature
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 102
When #bumblebee nests are located within 1km of a high quality food source, flowering throughout their lifecycle, the colonies tend to yield more daughter queens that survive to establish new nests the following year.
#bees
#nature
It’s #Friday folks.
Have the best #weekend you can.
You know the drill:
Be #kind
Be #gentle
Be #true
Be like #bees
Wanna save native wild bees?
Keep #flowers not hives.
Wanna save democracy?
Keep judges not fascists.
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 101
Bees 101:
A reminder as some don’t get this no matter how many times it’s said:
NOT ALL BEES ARE HONEY BEES.
The honey bee is just 1 of over 100 species of bee in Ireland, is essentially domesticated and NOT under threat.
Late?
Of course.
Around these parts this is actually yesterday’s fact!
Still a good one though.
Want #bees
Grow #flowers.
And more flowers.
And more flowers.
And even more flowers.
From organic/untreated seed.
Simple.
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 100
A #bumblebee colony develops over several months (Spring to Autumn). Most plants bloom for a few weeks.
So a colony needs multiple plant/crop species blooming in succession to successfully complete the life cycle.
Late?
Late?
I’ll give you late…
Oh wait I just did.
My bad.
Speaking of which…
Bad enough dying but often not considered - no control over what stand-for-nothing pseudo-fascist prick will show up at your funeral.
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 99
The ability of #bees and other insects to forage diminishes as #pollution in the air increases.
Air pollutants such as #ozone break down scent molecules emitted by #plants which #insects use to locate vital forage sources.
#theBeeAt3
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 98
Observation suggests that one of the tasks of female worker #bumblebees in the nest is that of ‘doorwoman’ or security.
At least one bee sits at the nest entrance 24/7 and vets #bees leaving and returning.
#nature
It’s #Friday folks!
Have the best #weekend you can.
You know the drill:
Be #kind
Be #gentle
Be #true
Be like #bees
Don’t be a fucking Nazi or cheer on fucking Nazis from a distance.
Go easy out there!
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 97
Buzz pollination - in brief.
#bumblebees rapidly contract their flight muscles. This produces powerful vibrations which they channel to the flower using their legs/mouths.
Result = #pollen explosion all over the bee.
Happy bee!
#bees
Almost on time!
Counts as early for me.
So…
Yes folks I have another quick question for ye:
Why does a duck have feathers?
To cover up its butt quack!
What?
What?
…butt quack…
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 96
Red clover is a superb nectar source for long-tongued #bumblebees.
Honeybees prefer White clover.
Nectar secreted by red #clover can often be so abundant it fills the flower-tube meaning honeybees can access it too.
#bees
Quick question:
What’s the difference between a marine biologist and a dog?
One tags a whale and the other wags a tail!
What?
What?
That’s what happens when I’ve time on my hands.
I’ll be in the corner!
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 95
Initially when #bumblebees start foraging they are not necessarily too good or efficient at it!
Newly emerged female workers often use up more resources in the process of foraging than they are actually gathering.
Awww!
#bees
Late.
But not too late!
You know what it is too late for?
The 400 + year old oak felled in London recently.
400 + years of living, giving and vitality.
Fucked in a moment.
On a whim.
This matters.
It hurts us all.
#Whitewebbsoak
#ecocide
#trees
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 94
Bumblebee nests are notoriously difficult to find in the #wild.
This can hinder population surveys of #bumblebee species as nest density is used as an indicator of populations.
#bees
Late.
Yep!
Busy working on numbers:
20,000 species of bee.
Decreasing.
10,000 species of birds.
Decreasing.
6,500 mammals.
Decreasing.
And…
2781 billionaires.
Increasing.
#TheBillionaireProblem
#BeesNotBillionaires
Join Us
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 93
There are more species of bee on the #planet than the combined total of mammal and bird species.
There are over 20,000 species of #bees.
Around 6,500 species of #mammals and 10,000 species of #birds have been described.
Early?
You’re darn tootin’ I am!
Got some billionaires to sort out.
#BeesNotBillionaires
Join me?
beesnotbillionaires.org
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 92
For #bumblebees size matters…
…of their antennae!
Bigger #bees with bigger antennae have greater sensitivity to odours.
Large antennae can catch more odour molecules and so are more sensitive to odours than small antennae.
What’s nine hours or so late when we are contemplating 130 million years of existence and evolution?
Basic bee facts every day at 3pm.
# 91
Bees foraged amongst dinosaurs.
Ponder that…in the context of our consequence.
