Bumblebee hairs, SEM

Bumblebee (or bumble bee) hairs, coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM). The bumblebee is the Bombus genus of the Apidae family. They are more effective pollinators than honeybees and their hair is thick which can act as an insulator keeping the bee warm in cold weather. This allows them to forage and pollinate flowers on days when it is too cold for honeybees. This makes bumblebees very important pollinators of fruit in colder climates. Some of their hairs are branched as seen in this image. This allows better pollen gathering as the pollen gets caught and sticks. Also, when flying a bee builds up an electrostatic charge. Parts of flowers are usually well earthed so as the bee enters the flower the pollen is attracted to the bee and can jump a few millimetres to the nearest hair. Magnification: x190 when printed at 10 cm wide., by Anne Weston, EM STP, the Francis Crick Institute/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY