Mystery of bumblebee ‘cemetery’ resolved
Hannah Ross was mystified by hundreds of dead and dying bumblebees on a Timaru street. The experts have given their view on the reason why.
Experts believe the death of the nest’s queen may be the reason for hundreds of dead and dying bumblebees discovered on a Timaru street on Christmas Day.
Hannah Ross, of Christchurch, was in Timaru visiting her grandparents and out for a walk on Raymond St, when she noticed the bumblebees scattered from one end of the street to the other – prompting the 10-year-old to ask her walking companions how so many bees could die at once.
Retired Timaru beekeeper Phil Sutton told The Timaru Herald the ‘‘most likely’’ possibility was the queen bee had been
Beekeeper
struck by a vehicle and died, taking her swarm with her.
‘‘The queen will land on the ground and the rest will congregate around her,’’ Sutton said.
‘‘They just stay there because they can’t go anywhere.’’
Sutton said hives each contained thousands of bumblebees, so a few hundred found dead along a footpath was ‘‘just a drop in the bucket’’ and not a cause for concern.
The bees could have died after being sprayed with insecticide, but usually they make it back to the hive before dying, Sutton said.
Those who accidentally stepped on a dead bee barefoot did not need to worry about getting stung, he said.
‘‘They inject their stinger like a syringe, so the bee has to be alive to push the venom out.’’
A Ministry of Primary Industries spokeswoman concurred the queen bee’s death possibly caused the swarm to die.
‘‘Although in species like honeybees the hives will continue to survive after the death of the queen, that is not the case for bumblebees. When the queen dies, the hive dies.’’
‘‘The queen will land on the ground and the rest will congregate around her.’’ Phil Sutton