US EditionDiscovery of Ancient Bee Nests in Fossils Points to a Never-Before-Seen Behavior
Burrowing bees reused fossil cavities inside bones for nests in a Hispaniola cave, adapting to scarce soil by exploiting safe, pre-existing chambers over multiple generations.
- Researchers in the Dominican Republic found the first evidence of bees nesting inside fossil cavities in a cave on Hispaniola, published December 16 in Royal Society Open Science.
- Facing thin soils on limestone karst, Hispaniola's terrain lacks stable topsoil, leading burrowing bees to use caves with bones accumulated by ancient barn owls for nesting.
- CT scans revealed some cavities were reused multiple times and one tooth socket contained six stacked ancient bee brood cells, while interiors showed smooth, wax-lined brood cells without preserved insect bodies.
- After cave repurposing plans emerged, the study lead and Field Museum teams removed abundant fossils to preserve traces, changing fossil preparation methods with ongoing analyses and planned publications.
- The find creates a new ichnofossil record that broadens understanding of bee nesting diversity, while only one other cave case exists with unidentified ancient bee species and no preserved bodies.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Ancient Bee Nests Hiding in Regurgitated, Fossilized Bones
Tens of thousands of years ago, some particularly crafty ancient bees decided to take advantage of the food scraps puked up by owls. Nautilus Members enjoy an ad-free experience. Log in or Join now . These cleverly recycled remains were discovered in the Cueva de Mono cave in the south of what’s now the Dominican Republic. There, researchers have encountered fossils mainly from rodents, but also some from birds, sloths, and reptiles. This hodge…
Ancient bees laid eggs inside bones
Bees are frequently associated with large queen-serving colonies featuring hundreds if not thousands of insects. In actuality, that’s usually not the case.“Most bees are solitary. They lay their eggs in small cavities, and they leave pollen for the larvae to eat,” explained paleontologist Lazasro Viñola López. “Some bee species burrow holes in wood or in the ground, or use empty structures for nests.” Viñola López, a researcher at Chicago’s Fiel…
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