There are very few situations where female royalty is encouraged to have multiple sexual partners. Okay, that probably never happens. But in the case of honeybees, it's key to their survival. At least that's what some researchers hope to prove.
Scientists from the University of Leeds are investigating possible causes of the widespread increase in honeybee deaths around the world. And they think they have the fix lots and lots of sex, with multiple partners. By having a high number of diverse male partners, the queen honeybee could help protect her children from disease.
Honeybees have been hit hard here in the U.S. and in other areas like U.K. from things like colony collapse disorder (CCD). From 1972 to 2006, there was a dramatic reduction in the number of feral honeybees in the U.S. and a gradual decline in the number of colonies maintained by beekeepers. A 2007 survey across 13 states asked 384 beekeepers about the number of hives containing few or no bees in spring. About 23.8 percent met the specified criteria for CCD.
Photo: Ryan Wick/Flickr
