Not called the " kill zone " for nothing , a piece of unembellished ash on the side of a vent in Nicaragua that is frequently unwrap to highly acidic natural gas is the last place you ’d recollect of looking for living . So suppose the surprise when an entomologist climb to the top of the vent to find a small insect buzzing about . Just meters from the curtain raising of the combat-ready volcano , where the vent ceaselessly ejects ash tree and volcanic bombs as the magma relentlessly bubble , a tiny species of bee hasmade its home .
tunnel into the ash tree on the side of a volcano where temperature can zoom to 42 ° degree centigrade ( 108 ° degree Fahrenheit ) , not only do the tenacious little insects have to deal with the threat of the entire mountain work off and smother their burrows in ash tree and lava , but they also have to contend with the periodic downpour of acid rainwater triggered by the atomic number 16 dioxide smoke emit by the matter . The conditions are so extreme , in fact , that there is no other visible life cling to the top of the mountain , not even any plants .
How the bees manages to survive living on the barren slopes of the caldera is therefore a bit of a plight . But by studying the track worm over three years , a team of researchers have been able toanswer some of the bee ’ mystery . The bee in inquiry , Anthophora squammulosa , is in reality quite a far-flung species , find decent along the Central American seaboard , though this is by far the most punishing placement it has ever been discovered live in .
Area of Masaya vent in Nicaragua on the slopes that the bees make their home . Erenler 2015
In fact , this is thought to be the most extreme volcanic environment any species of bee has ever been retrieve to inhabit and forage in , to the extent that the investigator had to wear gun masks and protective article of clothing for analyse it . The newspaper , publish inThe Pan - Pacific Entomologist , estimates that there are around 1,000 to 2,000 bee visit the slopes home , where the insects sustain a burrow around 30 centimeters ( 11.8 inch ) deep , at the bottom of which it lays its eggs .
They discover that an incredible 99 percent of all pollen collected by the bee was from a individual species of flora , Melanthera nivea , which can stand firm volcanic conditions , include acid rainwater . This is in stark contrast to bees that live in other locating , as they are usually known to be generalists that feed on a broad mixed bag of plants . It seems that in fierce conditions , the bee have to rely on the one plant that can survive alongside it , and the plants the one pollinator .
But that still does n’t explain why the bees have decided to set up camp here . The researchers opine that it is possibly touch on to the wide-eyed fact that few predators or sponger can live living just meter from an combat-ready vent , and who can blame them . Not only that , but the lack of plants might also be an advantage to the bees , as it means that it does n’t have to negotiate roots when constructing their tunnel .
Despite being feel across much of Central America , it is cogitate thatA. squammulosais on the verge of extinction due in part to home ground death , and if the utmost habit of this population are anything to go by , they may not be helping themselves much either .
The bees only feed on one species of flora , which can also withstand the harsh volcanic ecosystem . Erenler 2013/ Erenler et al . 2015
