Water Bees (Bombus Aquilii)

In early June 2005, a Nottinghamshire family sat down to eat their evening meal in
their holiday caravan at Anderby Creek, Lincolnshire. It had been a hot day and the
family opened the caravan windows and doors to let in some cool air. Their meal was
disturbed by a persistent ‘fly’ which had entered through one of the open windows.
The father hit out at the fly with a rolled up newspaper, squashing it against the
table. He went to dispose of it in the waste bin, but on doing so, noticed that this was
no ordinary fly. It had all the appearance of a honey bee, except that instead of being
the normal black and yellow, as one would expect, was actually a black and
purple/blue colour. Thinking this rather odd, he placed the remains of the ‘fly’ in an
empty matchbox, which he forgot about until some three months later. Back in
Nottingham, a chance meeting with a university professor, and a discussion about
reports by local anglers of strange green/black bees observed at nearby Attenborough
(Notts), prompted him to hand over the ‘fly’ for further investigation.. After months of
painstaking analysis and research, it was confirmed that the insect from Anderby
Creek was in fact, the long thought to be extinct, Sea Bee (Bombus Aquila Marinaris).
The fortunate capture of another, this time live specimen, from Nottinghamshire
subsequently proved to be the cousin of the Sea Bee - the River Bee (Bombus Aquila
Aquili)., also thought to be extinct. Both bees belong to the family Bombus Aquilii,
known collectively as ‘water bees’ The re-emergence of the two species has caused
great excitement amongst scientists around the world. However, questions, as yet
unanswered, remain. Where have the bees been for so long?, and why the sudden re-
emergence?. It is thought that both species have never completely disappeared,- one
theory has it that they have been repeatedly mistaken for the common house fly or
‘bluebottle’, which they so much resemble. Another theory has it that people of past
generations deliberately misled others (for reasons revealed below) into thinking they
were flies.
It is known that both species are ‘cuckoo bees’. They do not form their own colonies,
but invade the hives of the common honey bee, fighting their way in, where they lay
their eggs amongst the combs, the female water bee dying from her injuries, only a
matter of seconds after laying her eggs. On emergence from their cells, the new
generation of water bees are taken to be ordinary honey bees by the host colony due
to the honey bees colour shift of vision. Unlike humans, bees cannot see the red end
of the spectrum, but can see ultra-violet. The distinctive ‘scent ‘ of each hive is
assumed by the water bees on emergence, and the ‘intruders’ although of a different
colour, ranging from dark purple through blue, to green, are indistinguishable to the
native colony.
The Sea Bee and its cousin, the River Bee, feed almost exclusively on various algae
floating on both sea and river, and on blackberry plants, found in profusion on
seacoasts and river banks. On returning to the hive, the water bees deposit their
collections into the hosts own honey cells, the difference being that honey produced
by the water bees, contains high proportions of moisture, and the honey, after a time,
helped by the addition of natural yeasts from the blackberries, literally turns into
mead. Analysis of the ‘mead’ has determined that this can be as high as 95% by
volume, depending on how long it has remained unused in the hive. Reports have it
that generations of water bees use the same hive for as long as 40 years. The honey
produced by the water bees is a distinctive colour, due to tannins from blackberries.
However, as blackberry pollen contains a relatively high lead content which is
indigestible by water bees, the bi-product is a heavy wax, which, when incorporated
into comb building and consequently absorbed by the host bees, is lethal. The water
bees eventually poisoning the original host colony, allowing for a complete takeover
of the hive.
Water bees are unique in the fact that, unlike all other bees, they are stingless ( which
may account for their confusion with house flies) but their bite can bring on various
degrees of blood poisoning.
Honey produced by the water bees, in medieval times, was a much sought after
commodity, the equivalent of the best caviars of today. It might also explain the
mystery of the ‘Marie Celeste’. It is thought that the provisions onboard the Marie
Celeste included ’20 pounds of fynest seabee honey’. If the crew had eaten the honey
and the comb, they would have not only been extremely inebriated, but almost
certainly have gone mad due to lead poisoning. Many other nautical mysteries could
also be explained the same way. A similar explanation can be given to the behaviour
of the infamous Viking ‘berserker’. The original name given to these warriors was
thought to derive from Old Norse ‘berserkr’ which literally translated means ‘bear
shirt’. Research has now cast doubt upon this assumption. ‘Bersekrs’ sometimes wore
black and blue coloured clothing into battle, and painted their shield (if they carried
one) similar colours – the colours of the Sea Bee. Recent research suggests that their
name may derive from Old Norse ‘Beserkr’ – ‘bee shirt’. A combination of near neat
alcohol and lead poisoning would have added to their reckless behaviour and
imperviousness to battle wounds. Sea Bees used to be a common sight on the eastern
coasts of England, northern Europe and the western parts of Scandinavia. The less
common River Bee has only ever been reported along the Trent Valley of central
England. The Romans of ancient Britain prized River Bee honey as the best in the
world, using it almost exclusively in an appetiser described by the Roman culinary
writer Apicius. This consisted of bread dipped in a mixture of egg and aged River Bee
honey, and then deep fried. It was only served at the most extravagant banquets, along
with mead made from the same honey. (This ‘aperitif’ commanded prices the
equivalent today of something like £120 a glass!) Evidence from Lincoln confirm this
dish was served there in Roman times, and that the honey was exported to Rome in
large quantities (usually to be served only at imperial tables).
For centuries, mariners have considered the Sea Bee a symbol of good luck and a
protection against the elements, in particular all that the North Sea could throw at
them - similar to the protection given by a St Christopher of modern times. This may
account for the custom of painting fishing boats black with blue trim – prevalent only
on the eastern coast of England, parts of Belgium, Holland, Northern France and
western coasts of Scandinavia – all areas settled by Vikings and inhabited by Sea
Bees. Finds from burials near the ancient Fosse Way, close to Newark, Notts (which
stands on the river Trent) indicate that both Celts and Romans carried gold amulets of
water bees as good luck charms and as a form of protection on perilous long journeys
One such amulet was made of gold and studded with emerald, something that could
only be described as a River Bee. Medieval witches and possibly guardians of Roman
temples in ancient Britain ( there were several such temples in the
Nottinghamshire/Lincolnshire area - dedicated to local water deities – bees?), revered
the water bee in the same way as the ancient Greeks revered the wine god Dionysus,
using the honey and comb to produce trance like states - along with mead used in
orgiastic rituals. To see a water bee is considered good luck and has long been thought
to bring happiness and protection to anyone who does so. To find a hive inhabited by
water bees will almost certainly bring great wealth.
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