The Incredible Resilience of Bumblebees

Recently, scientists unexpectedly discovered that queen bumble bees are even more resilient than originally thought. Queen bumblebees, along with other ground-nesting bee species, have been found to survive underwater, challenging the long-held belief that bees cannot survive flooding. In some states, flooding is a genuine annual concern due to weather patterns, but in this new discovery, the already incredible bumblebees were found to survive underwater for up to an entire week!

Ground-Nesting Bees and Flooding

Although most people picture bees in a hive or hanging from a tree, more than 80% of bee species are ground-nesting, making them vulnerable to weather and flooding. This is what makes this new finding so incredible. How can submerged bees survive these conditions?

The Bumblebee life cycle flows with the seasons and is most active in summer. In the fall, many bees within the colony die, including worker bees, drones, and the old queen. The new queen spends winter in the soil, like hibernation. However, fall is when flooding is most common, but this purposeful conservation of their energy helps them rebuild in the spring. During the winter, bees face many threats, as snow melts and rainstorms are most common. As the soil becomes saturated, queens are vulnerable to drowning. Now, we know that hibernating bees in the soil must be able to survive flooding and prolonged submersion. It was only in 2024 that this was discovered about queen bumblebees, and research showed they can survive submerged for up to 1 week, which is mind-blowing. Scientists wanted to know why, and now more is known about this new discovery queen bumblebees can breathe underwater!

Save the Bumblebee Queen!

The research mishap occurred when scientists kept queens in soil tubes in the refrigerator, and overnight, the tubes condensed and filled with water, completely submerging the bumblebee queens. Assuming the queens were dead, the scientist removed them from the water tubes and was surprised when they began to move. Initially, scientists thought this may have been an isolated incident, but soon discovered this was a behavior unique to queen bumblebees. As researchers sought to define this behavior and the conditions for survival, they discovered that bumblebee queens could survive for up to one week, with more than 90% surviving.

Taking a Deeper Dive in Bees and Water

When insects are submerged, their survival instincts kick in. Some insects hold their breath and engage in anaerobic metabolism, allowing them to live without oxygen. Insects that live in the water can survive and breathe underwater without drowning. Bumblebees are terrestrial insects, which is why they can produce anaerobic energy, breathe underwater, and survive underwater. This discovery led to extensive research into conditions that would mimic the accidental reveal. It was further revealed that bumblebee queens were taking in oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide, so they continued breathing while underwater. Bumblebee queens are the first terrestrial insects discovered to extract oxygen from water. The queen’s metabolism reduced by less than five percent of her resting value, showing the queens required significantly less oxygen in these circumstances, allowing them to survive longer periods under water.

A single accident sparked a new appreciation for queen bumblebees. Are they similar to beetles, breathing trapped air under their fuzz? The next question: how many other ground-dwelling bee species can do this? It’s unlikely bumblebees are alone in this remarkable ability.