Last summer, research published in the journal Science concluded that bumblebees from North America and Europe are not migrating en masse to colder northern regions, a survival mechanism that other species do. However, a more recent study does shine a small glimmer of hope about its future.
After examining the populations of two species that live in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado (USA), scientists have found that their languages have shrunk 24% in the last 40 years. This means that they are rapidly adapting to changes in their habitats, where there are fewer and fewer flowers. With a smaller libator appendage they have access to more variety of nectar. It is a striking case of evolution-express , in just 40 generations.
The team of researchers, who have studied specimens of Bombus balteatus and Bombus sylvicola collected since 1966, have found that the flower density on the slopes of the mountains has decreased by no less than 70% . This is what has forced bumblebees to expand their menu, since before they were limited to sucking flowers with long tube corollas, such as those of the Castilleja genus, wild indigo or aconite. The downside to adaptation is that these plants now run the risk of not being pollinated and disappearing.
