Dr. Bryan Danforth of Cornell University joins the podcast to discuss a new Apidology study led by Steven Hodge on emergence dynamics and host–parasite associations in a massive cemetery nesting aggregation of the solitary bee Andrena regularis. Using emergence traps checked daily for 40 days at East Lawn Cemetery near Cornell, the team estimated a mean population size of 5.5 million emerging bees within a compact area and documented synchronized host emergence with more gradual, delayed emergence by Nomada cuckoo bees, plus low-frequency associates including a meloid beetle and a conopid fly. Danforth explains A. regularis biology and its exceptional importance and effectiveness as an apple pollinator, highlights evidence for greater female investment as a potential sign of abundant resources, and argues cemeteries and other nest sites may be overlooked conservation assets, supported by Cornell's Ground-Nesting Bees iNaturalist initiative.
Danforth Lab: https://www.danforthlab.entomology.cornell.edu
GNBees: https://www.gnbee.org
Hoge, S.T., Kueneman, J.G., Fordyce, R., Dobler, C., Odanaka, K. and Danforth, B.N., 2026. Emergence dynamics and host-parasite associations in a large aggregation of Andrena regularis (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Andrenidae). Apidologie, 57(2), p.29. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13592-026-01256-6?cjdata=MXxZfDB8WXww&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=commission_junction&utm_campaign=CONR_BOOKS_ECOM_GL_PBOK_06YUE_GL_ALWYS_DEEPLINK&utm_content=textlink&utm_term=PID100052570&CJEVENT=684ba1913cbf11f182b202450a18b8fc
00:00 Bee Numbers In Perspective
00:53 Solitary Bee Megasites
01:14 Meet Dr Brian Danforth
05:13 Cemetery Nesting Twist
06:14 Bee Biology And Pollination
08:54 Why Cemeteries Work
12:27 Biodiversity And History
14:00 Emergence Traps Method
16:34 Parasites And Phenology
21:07 Sex Ratios And Health
24:04 Millions Of Bees Estimated
26:44 Conservation and iNaturalist
28:38 Can We Build Bee Beds
