研究人員認為這些金屬藍色的蜜蜂已經(jīng)滅絕了——直到他們在佛羅里達看到它們

研究人員認為這些金屬藍色的蜜蜂已經(jīng)滅絕了——直到他們在佛羅里達看到它們

An extremely rare blue bee has been spotted in Central Florida, a discovery that thrilled researchers who suspected the insect might have become instinct.

佛羅里達中部發(fā)現(xiàn)了一只極其罕見的藍色蜜蜂，這一發(fā)現(xiàn)讓那些懷疑這種昆蟲可能是出于本能的研究人員興奮不已。

The blue calamintha bee is believed to live only in the Lake Wales Ridge region of Central Florida, one of the fastest-disappearing ecosystems in the U.S. (Photo: Chase Kimmel)

Last recorded four years ago, the blue calamintha bee was seen by Florida Museum of Natural History researcher Chase Kimmel in the Lake Wales Ridge region in March. The metallic, navy blue insect had only been previously spotted in four locations in a 16-square-mile area of Lake Wales Ridge, according to a museum press release.

佛羅里達自然歷史博物館的研究人員切斯·金梅爾今年3月在威爾士海脊地區(qū)發(fā)現(xiàn)了藍菖蒲蜂，這是四年前的最后一次記錄。根據(jù)博物館的新聞發(fā)布，這種金屬的，深藍色的昆蟲之前只在16平方英里的威爾士湖脊的四個地方被發(fā)現(xiàn)過。

"I was open to the possibility that we may not find the bee at all so that first moment when we spotted it in the field was really exciting," said Kimmel, a postdoctoral researcher.

博士后研究員Kimmel說:“我不排除我們可能根本找不到蜜蜂的可能性，所以當我們第一次在野外發(fā)現(xiàn)它的時候真的很激動。”

The bee depends on a blooming plant known as Ashe’s calamint for pollination. (Photo: Chase Kimmel)

Florida's State Wildlife Action Plan lists the blue calamintha — or Osmia calaminthae — as a species of greatest conservation need, and this research could help determine whether it qualifies for protection under the Endangered Species Act.

佛羅里達州的國家野生動物行動計劃將藍菖蒲列為最需要保護的物種，這項研究將有助于確定藍菖蒲是否符合《瀕危物種法案》的保護要求。

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says Lake Wales Ridge is a "vanishing ecosystem." The ridge is home to 23 of the nation’s rarest plants, four rare animal species, and four globally rare plant communities.

美國魚類和野生動物管理局說，威爾斯嶺湖是一個“正在消失的生態(tài)系統(tǒng)”。山脊上生長著美國最稀有的23種植物，4種稀有動物，以及4個全球稀有植物群落。

Researchers placed dozens of bee condos where the bees and their favorite flowers were spotted. (Photo: Chase Kimmel)

The blue calamintha is a solitary bee, according to the museum. It creates and lives in individual nests instead of hives like honeybees do. Researchers have yet to find any blue calamintha nests. They know, however, that the species is part of the genus Osmia, which often uses existing structures — like holes in dead trees, hollow stems, or ground burrows — as nests.

根據(jù)博物館的說法，藍菖蒲是一種獨居的蜜蜂。它繁衍并生活在單獨的巢穴中，而不是像蜜蜂那樣生活在蜂巢中。研究人員還沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)藍菖蒲的巢穴。然而，他們知道，該物種是Osmia屬的一部分，通常使用現(xiàn)有的結(jié)構(gòu)——如死樹的洞，空心莖，或地洞——作為巢穴。

Researcher can learn more about the bee's nesting preferences when they see which holes they choose to use.

研究人員可以了解更多關(guān)于蜜蜂筑巢的偏好，當他們看到蜜蜂選擇使用的洞。

Until this recently discovery, researchers weren't sure the blue calamintha bee still existed. (Photo: Chase Kimmel)

Before the bee was spotted in March, it hadn't been since since 2016. Kimmel has since found it in three places where it had been seen before and in six new areas as far as 50 miles away. That's "good news for the species," the museum says. The goal for the project over the next year is to record the bee in as many locations as possible to learn its range and to gain greater understanding of the insect.

在今年3月發(fā)現(xiàn)這只蜜蜂之前，它從2016年起就再也沒有出現(xiàn)過。自那以后，Kimmel在3個以前見過它的地方和6個50英里以外的新地方發(fā)現(xiàn)了它。博物館說，這“對物種來說是個好消息”。該項目明年的目標是在盡可能多的地點記錄蜜蜂，以了解其活動范圍，并對這種昆蟲有更深入的了解。

"We're trying to fill in a lot of gaps that were not previously known," Kimmel said. "It shows how little we know about the insect community and how there's a lot of neat discoveries that can still occur."

金梅爾說:“我們正在努力填補許多以前不為人知的空白。這表明我們對昆蟲群落的了解是多么的少，而且仍然可以有很多新的發(fā)現(xiàn)。”

Some research has been stilted due to the pandemic. Kimmel has been allowed to continue traveling and living at the Archbold Biological Station in the area. But other researchers — including adviser Jaret Daniels, director of the museum's McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity — have been unable to join him. Volunteers would have helped with the project, mapping potential sites of Ashe's calamint, but their work has been suspended too.

由于流行病，一些研究被擱置。基梅爾被允許繼續(xù)在該地區(qū)的阿奇博爾德生物站旅行和生活。但其他研究人員——包括顧問加雷特·丹尼爾斯，博物館鱗翅目和生物多樣性麥圭爾中心主任——一直未能加入他的行列。志愿者們本可以幫助這個項目，繪制阿什災(zāi)難的潛在地點，但他們的工作也被暫停了。

"All of this work is a collaboration," Daniels said. "It takes an army to make it happen, you couldn't do it without all the broader community of assistance that makes a project work to generate good results."

“所有這些工作都是合作完成的，”丹尼爾斯說。“這需要一支軍隊來實現(xiàn)，如果沒有更廣泛的社區(qū)的幫助，你不可能做到這一點，而社區(qū)的幫助可以讓項目產(chǎn)生良好的結(jié)果。”