{"id":388166,"date":"2025-07-11T10:24:48","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T08:24:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=388166"},"modified":"2025-07-11T10:24:50","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T08:24:50","slug":"bees-are-losing-their-buzz-climate-change-reduces-frequency-pitch-of-wing-vibrations-researchers-warn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=388166","title":{"rendered":"Bees are losing their buzz! \u2018Climate change\u2019 reduces frequency & pitch of wing vibrations, researchers warn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Climate Depot<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Marc Morano<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sciencetech\/article-14885915\/Bees-buzz-Warmer-weather-frequency-pitch.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By XANTHA LEATHAM,<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s nothing quite like the gentle buzz of a bumblebee to let you know summer\u2019s approaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the distinct hum could soon become a rarity \u2013 as climate change<\/a> is reducing the frequency and pitch of wing vibrations, according to scientists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experts warned this could have consequences for the effectiveness of bee communication and their role as pollinators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it could be bad news for the nation\u2019s tomatoes, blueberries and honeysuckle plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A team from Uppsala University in Sweden<\/a> analysed colonies of buff-tailed bumblebees \u2013 one of the most numerous bumblebee species in Europe and the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They used accelerometers to measure the frequency and audible pitch of the bees\u2019 buzz, specifically focusing on the sounds they make when they aren\u2019t flying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analysis showed that bees were affected by both increased temperatures and exposure to heavy metals, with their muscles contracting less during buzzing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This led to fewer wing vibrations at a reduced audible pitch \u2013 suggesting the buzz might not be so loud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018People have been long interested in how insect flight muscles work, as these muscles power the most efficient flight systems in nature,\u2019 Dr Charlie Woodrow, one of the study\u2019s authors, said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018However, many do not know that bees use these muscles for functions other than flight.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These important non-flight muscle vibrations are used in communication, defence and buzz-pollination, he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Buzz pollination is an incredible behaviour whereby a bee will curl its body around the pollen-concealing anthers of some flowers and contract the flight muscles up to 400 times per second to produce vibrations which shake the pollen loose,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many common garden plants rely on buzz pollination including tomatoes, blueberries and honeysuckle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They said their findings could help to identify the species or regions most at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Perhaps buzzes could even be used as a marker of stress or environmental change,\u2019 Dr Woodrow said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018For example, we now know that certain environmental pollutants can affect the buzzes bees produce, so they could even serve as an indicator of ecosystem health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the environment gets too warm then bees may simply choose to avoid buzz-pollinated flowers, Dr Woodrow explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The research was presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual Conference in Antwerp, Belgium.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s nothing quite like the gentle buzz of a bumblebee to let you know summer\u2019s approaching.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":388170,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691836510,691818056,691819743,691836512,691820424,691836511,691836509],"class_list":{"0":"post-388166","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-bees","9":"tag-climate-change","10":"tag-climate-propaganda","11":"tag-heavy-metals","12":"tag-temperatures","13":"tag-uppsala-university-in-sweden","14":"tag-wing-vibrations","16":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQP5OkWN16iXD61E6OH1BT3MgTfU-otuoNYdy1HNXmY2RUjdQLNEVWZ8UhX0hb0nbw6nBECsbzWUcLyMnMNUT7O8FYOfE2CFNLv8peEa4PnYKyN3G6m_ai_F8eO8BMJLEXhl0rtkFfE4_H9jZ0lEjUcRPvqx-1.jpeg?fit=1280%2C1280&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1CYK","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":242722,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=242722","url_meta":{"origin":388166,"position":0},"title":"Tell the Truth, UPI News, Parasites and Pesticides, NOT Climate Change, Are Killing Honey Bee Colonies","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"01\/02\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Temperature and precipitation may also have an effect on bees, but there is no data showing that periods of intense,\u00a0bee-killing heat\u00a0is occurring more frequently, and\u00a0precipitation increases\u00a0in the United States have been modest and gradual, with no sign of increasing intense rainfall, or\u00a0drought.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-29.png?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-29.png?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-29.png?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-29.png?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-29.png?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":281314,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=281314","url_meta":{"origin":388166,"position":1},"title":"Thanks, New York Times, For Finally Admitting Honey Bees Are Doing Great","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"30\/09\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"From ClimateRealism ByLinnea Lueken A recent\u00a0New York Times\u00a0(NYT) article titled \u201cThe Beekeepers Who Don\u2019t Want You to Buy More Bees,\u201d explains that contrary to popular media narratives, honey bee populations are healthy and numerous. 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