EYE OPENER
EYE OPENER
Oh,
beehive
GOOSEFELD, GERMANY
This buff-tailed
bumblebee is nature’s
Uber, carrying Parasitellus
mites from nest to flower
and back again. While the
mites have no effect on
the wellbeing of their host,
the relationship isn’t all
that friendly.
“The mites are mostly
kleptoparasitic. They steal
pollen from the bees, and
get shelter in the bee’s
nest,” explains Professor
Paul Schmid-Hempel,
experimental ecologist
and researcher into
parasites and diseases of
social insects at ETH
Zürich, university for
science and technology.
“They use the bee as a
transport vehicle from
one nest to another. They
can also ‘jump off’ onto
flowers that are visited by
their carrier bee, then
wait – up to maybe one
day – for their next ‘taxi’
to jump on,” he explains.
It’s common to see
large numbers of mites
clinging to a single bee,
especially a queen in the
spring, as this is when
she’ll move on to
establish a new nest.
HEIDI & HANS JÜRGEN KOCH
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