The world’s bees are a keystone species. They pollinate the plants that comprise up to 35% of human’s food supplies. Yet bees are struggling worldwide. To help them out, researchers have designed a “superfood” for our six-legged, fuzzy friends. Bee colonies numbers wax and wane yearly.This year, though, beekeepers in the US have cited heavy losses. Some regions have lost as much as 62% of their bees. Causes include climate change and diseases. Such colony losses are observed worldwide. They occur as climate change impacts the number and types of flowers available for bees to visit. The fewer flowers, the less diverse a bee’s diet. This deprives them of crucial nutrients that help bee larvae grow. To help bees get nutrients, scientists at the University of Oxford in the UK have genetically engineered Yarrowia lipolytica. It's a yeast fungus. When fermented, it makes a substance containing the nutrients bees need. Researchers ran a three-month feeding trial with the new superfood. Hives given the yeast were able to rear 15 times more larvae who survived to hatch, compared with control hives. They also spent more time rearing the young bees. This ensured more grew to adults. The research was published last month in the journal Nature. It came as welcome news to beekeepers. “It’s fantastic to see scientists developing this new bee ‘superfood,’ and there’s no doubt it could play an important role in supporting honeybee health,” commercial beekeeper Simon Noble told Country Living. Reflect: What’s something in the world you care about that you wish more people tried to help protect, and why does it matter to you?
