2024-04-21 23:09:30
Bumblebee queens survive prolonged periods of total submergence while wintering underground, an unexpected finding from a team at the University of Guelph.
Bumblebees are crucial pollinating insects, known for their importance in ecosystems around the world. During the cold season, queen bumblebees retreat underground to spend the winter in small burrows.
Hibernate until spring comes
In general, They look for well-drained soil, often in banks, to hibernate until spring arrives. These soil features likely serve to protect soil from flooding, a potentially fatal threat to many terrestrial organisms.
The discovery arose from an unexpected experimental error when water accidentally flooded containers housing hibernating bumblebee queens.
The discovery made by the University of Guelph team, detailed in Biology Letters (1), arose from an unexpected experimental error when water accidentally flooded containers housing hibernating bumblebee queens.
Up to seven days
“Finding the queens submerged, I drained the water from the tubes and the queens were still alive. “I was surprised,” postdoctoral researcher Dr. Sabrina Rondeau, author of the study, recalls in a statement.
This led researchers to delve deeper into this mystery. The study involved exposing commercially raised bumblebee queens to a variety of dipping treatments while they overwintered under controlled conditions.
Queens kept underwater for up to seven days did not show lower survival rates compared to the control group not exposed to water.
Surprisingly, queens kept underwater for up to seven days did not show lower survival rates compared to the control group not exposed to water.
“Flooding is an unpredictable challenge for ground-dwelling speciesparticularly bees that nest or overwinter underground,” Raine said. “This area of research has remained largely unexplored until now, opening many avenues for future research.”
The tolerance of bumblebee queens to immersion occurs during diapausea state of suspended growth and reproduction characterized by reduced oxygen intake.
Rondeau explained: “Insects breathe through spiracles, not nostrils like humans. During diapause, the spiracles can remain closed for long periods, preventing water from entering the body.” Submerged bee queens They can also use cuticular respiration (cutaneous respiration), facilitated by air bubbles trapped on the surface of their body.
The findings underscore the need to further investigate the mechanisms behind bumblebee resilience, especially in the context of escalating extreme climate events.
To the extent that climate change intensifies, insights from this study could inform strategies to conserve these vital pollinators and the ecosystems they support.
References
- (1) Unveiling the submerged secrets: bumblebee queens’ resilience to flooding. Biology Letters.
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