Mother bees collect pollen and nectar from flowers to bring back to the nest for their young. They carry the nectar in their crop (their stomach, basically) and the pollen in special hair brushes called their scopa or pollen basket, depending on the species.
Bees like the Megachile leaf-cutter bee in the first part of the video have the scopa on the underside of the abdomen - the rear segment of the body. So, when she returns to the nest with a load of pollen and nectar, she first goes in head-first to regurgitate the nectar. Then she backs out, spins around at the nest entrance, and backs in to unload the pollen. Then she'll come back out (head-first this time) and fly off to load up again.
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Dr. Jessica Forrest
Associate Professor of Biology, University of Ottawa
Head of the Forrest Lab
Have bee footage or videos you want us to explain? Send them to creatures@scopabio.com!
Credits: The first part of the video was submitted by customer and conservationist Deb Toor, while the second part was sent it from Scopa's very own Sarah Gregory from her home garden.
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