Short Cut

We all take shortcuts.

We look for the shortest line at the supermarket, we use keyboard shortcuts, and we text ”how r u?”

So, why shouldn't honey bees use shortcuts? They do.

If you've ever watched a carpenter bee drill a hole in the corolla of a tubed flower to get at the nectar—this is "nectar robbing" or bypassing pollination—you may have seen a honey bee come along and sip nectar from the hole. Why work hard to get at the nectar when it's right there for the taking?

This is the insect version of a convenience market!

Take the foxgloves (family Plantaginaceae, genus Digitalis). Sometimes you'll see a honey bee trailing or shadowing a carpenter bee that moves from corolla to corolla.

Short cut to the nectar!