It's a strange, strange world we live in, Master Jack.

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Bee-zinga

Euglossa bazinga is a euglossine bee species found in Brazil. It is named after the catchphrase of the fictional character Dr. Sheldon Cooper from the television show The Big Bang Theory. It was previously misidentified as Euglossa ignita, and is threatened with habitat loss.

Euglossines are also called orchid bees or long-tongued bees. They belong to a large group of brightly colored bees important to the ecology of New World tropical forests. Color combinations include metallic blues, greens, and bronzes. They are noted for their long tongues and their role in the pollination of over 700 species of tropical orchids. Euglossines pollinate many flowers in the forest understory, but they also visit species in the forest canopy such as lianas and emergent trees.

For bees, they are not all that social ... hence, perhaps, the connection with Sheldon Cooper?

1 comment:

  1. My 'big brother' is the authority on orchids; I bet he could tell you/us about this bee.

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