As if lethal snakes, spiders and sharks weren’t sufficient, Australia now has a brand new creepy critter: a “lucifer” bee with devil-like horns.
The species, dubbed Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer, was discovered within the state of Western Australia, Curtin College introduced on Tuesday.
Package Prendergast on the college’s Faculty of Molecular and Life Sciences found the bee whereas surveying a critically endangered wildflower in 2019 and was instantly drawn to the insect’s distinctive look.
“The feminine had these unbelievable little horns on her face,” she stated.
A fan of the Netflix TV present “Lucifer,” she stated the title was the right match for the bee’s distinctively devilish look.
Curtin College Faculty of Molecular and Life Sciences
Prendergast stated DNA barcoding confirmed the brand new species did not match any identified bees in DNA databases. She additionally stated the specimens she retrieved didn’t match any in museum collections.
“It is the primary new member of this bee group to be described in additional than 20 years, which actually reveals how a lot life we nonetheless have to find,” Prendergast stated.
She added that she hopes the invention will elevate consciousness concerning the variety of undiscovered species that might nonetheless be on the market, particularly in areas threatened local weather change and mining.
“Many mining corporations nonetheless do not survey for native bees, so we could also be lacking undescribed species, together with those who play essential roles in supporting threatened crops and ecosystems,” she stated.
“With out realizing which native bees exist and what crops they rely on, we threat dropping each earlier than we even notice they’re there.”
Nearly all flowering crops rely on wild pollinators, notably bees, however habitat loss and local weather change are driving many important species to the brink of extinction.
Curtin College famous the publication of the analysis coincides with Australian Pollinator Week, which highlights the essential position bees in sustaining wholesome ecosystems.
The brand new analysis was printed within the Journal of Hymenoptera Analysis.
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