Bee Diversity at a Glance
Giant, colorful flower constructions and exquisite macro photographs now tower over the exhibit hall's many interactive displays. This year, native bees have the spotlight and each display element will serve to highlight their amazing qualities as diverse pollinators. Universally-engaging displays allow visitors a modern museum experience. Meanwhile, a simple case of pinned bee specimens both illustrates their great diversity and nods to a time when museum exhibits consisted entirely of display cases and habitat dioramas. No matter how it is exhibited, a bee's story can find an audience in a museum. Even a dead bee has its place here.
Beginning this May, visitors are able to peer into a display case at a lineup of over 30 unique bee specimens. It would be impossible to witness such an array all at once in the bees' natural habitat, and the comparison demonstrates just how dissimilar each appear. Some bees are large and fuzzy, others being smaller than their identification tags. Without expert knowledge, many of us may even believe some to be flies, wasps, or other type of non-bee insect. It can surely be enlightening to realize through one's own eyes the many types of native bees that may go unnoticed in the wild.
Upon close inspection, bee species differ in many ways. Bombus auricomus, commonly known as the Black-and-Gold Bumble Bee, dwarfs the tiny Masked Bee, Hylaeus mesillae, on the opposite end. The two bumble bees on display have many hairs on their bodies and special clusters of branched hairs on their hind legs for carrying pollen. This is a bowl-like shape that is called a "pollen basket," but other types of bees have hairy legs for collecting pollen as well. The Sunflower Bee is a large member of the Svastra genus, with dense hairs on its hind legs. As the common name suggests, its hairy legs help it to be an excellent pollinator of sunflower plants.
Others have seemingly no hairs at all, but rather dazzling bodies in shades of blue and green. Some bees vary in color even within the species. The Tiny Green Sweat Bee, Augochlorella aurata, changes in hues depending on which angle it is viewed from. Overall, it is a brilliant turquoise, as is its "twin" of an entirely different genus, Augochlora pura or the Pure Golden Green Sweat Bee. Where they lack in fuzzy hairs they make up in shimmery exoskeletons.
Some bees don stripes on their abdomen. Again, their appearance may convince some onlookers that they are not bees at all, and perhaps this is the intention. Others have elongated bodies, spherical abdomen, or unusually long antennae. With such diversity among 33 bee species, it's incredible to consider that 133 more species make the Northwoods their home. Many, if not all, are represented by specimens located in museums throughout the state. Museums serve as a repository for these and many of the 1.9 million named species of living organisms throughout the world. The ability to share knowledge and discuss observations while huddled around a display is part of the reason why collections continue to grow in size, diversity, and beauty.
Upon close inspection, bee species differ in many ways. Bombus auricomus, commonly known as the Black-and-Gold Bumble Bee, dwarfs the tiny Masked Bee, Hylaeus mesillae, on the opposite end. The two bumble bees on display have many hairs on their bodies and special clusters of branched hairs on their hind legs for carrying pollen. This is a bowl-like shape that is called a "pollen basket," but other types of bees have hairy legs for collecting pollen as well. The Sunflower Bee is a large member of the Svastra genus, with dense hairs on its hind legs. As the common name suggests, its hairy legs help it to be an excellent pollinator of sunflower plants.
Others have seemingly no hairs at all, but rather dazzling bodies in shades of blue and green. Some bees vary in color even within the species. The Tiny Green Sweat Bee, Augochlorella aurata, changes in hues depending on which angle it is viewed from. Overall, it is a brilliant turquoise, as is its "twin" of an entirely different genus, Augochlora pura or the Pure Golden Green Sweat Bee. Where they lack in fuzzy hairs they make up in shimmery exoskeletons. Some bees don stripes on their abdomen. Again, their appearance may convince some onlookers that they are not bees at all, and perhaps this is the intention. Others have elongated bodies, spherical abdomen, or unusually long antennae. With such diversity among 33 bee species, it's incredible to consider that 133 more species make the Northwoods their home. Many, if not all, are represented by specimens located in museums throughout the state. Museums serve as a repository for these and many of the 1.9 million named species of living organisms throughout the world. The ability to share knowledge and discuss observations while huddled around a display is part of the reason why collections continue to grow in size, diversity, and beauty.