This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Each spring, thousands of solitary bees (Amegilla dawsoni), also known as Dawson's burrowing bees, emerge from burrows scattered across Western Australia's arid plains. These bees, distinguished by their fluffy appearance and either white and maroon (females) or coffee (males) coloring, are on a quest to find flowers and a mate.
They are just one of more than 1,700 native bee species that call Australia home—a figure steadily rising each year. Australia's native bees face a conservation crisis. Wild bees are declining worldwide, under pressure from habitat destruction, invasive species, pesticide use and climate change.
Due to a lack of funding and attention, few people recognize how much native bees are struggling. Even native bee researchers don't have all the answers. Our new study took a closer look at the major threats to Australia's native bees and, by drawing on research from here and abroad, created a plan to conserve them.
Native bees play an indispensable role in ecosystems across Australia. They pollinate many native plants that can't be pollinated by introduced species, including valuable crops such as macadamias and mangoes. Native bees provide vital food and habitat for an array of Australian animals, including by pollinating eucalypts that feed koalas.
In doing so, they help entire ecosystems thrive. For First Nations communities, native stingless bees also hold significant cultural value. For thousands of years, First Nations peoples have used stingless bee honey and wax in gifts, food and the making of tools.
These bees also feature in many traditional stories such as "The First Bees," an oral history from the Gunwinggu people of West Arnhem Land about ancient beings turning into stingless bees. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. d research that matter—daily or weekly. In Australia, scientists are discovering more native bee species each year, with more than 115 new species described last year.
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