Scientists discover new ‘Lucifer’ bee with evil horns lurking in endangered wildflower in Australia
Like mortal snakes, spiders And sharks weren’t enough, Australia now has a scary new creature: a “lucifer” bee with devil-like horns.
The species, nicknamed Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer, was found in the state of Western Australia, Curtin University announced on Tuesday.
Kit Prendergast of the university’s School of Molecular and Life Sciences discovered the bee while monitoring a critically endangered wildflower in 2019 and was immediately drawn to the insect’s unique appearance.
“The female had these amazing little horns on her face,” she said.
A fan of the Netflix TV show “Lucifer,” she said the name perfectly suited the bee’s typically evil appearance.
Curtin University School of Molecular and Life Sciences
Prendergast said the DNA barcode confirmed that the new species did not match any known bees in DNA databases. She also said the specimens she recovered did not match any specimens in the museum’s collections.
“This is the first new member of this group of bees to be described in over 20 years, which really shows how much life we still have to discover,” Prendergast said.
She added that she hopes the discovery will raise awareness of how many undiscovered species may still exist, especially in areas threatened by climate change and mining.
“Many mining companies are still not conducting research on native bees, so we may be missing undescribed species, including those that play a crucial role in supporting threatened plants and ecosystems,” she said.
“Without knowing which native bees exist and which plants they depend on, we risk losing both before we even realize they are there.”
Nearly all flowering plants rely on wild pollinators, especially bees, but habitat loss and climate change are driving many vital species to the brink of extinction.
Curtin University noted that the release of the research coincides with Australian Pollinator Week, which highlights the crucial role of bees in maintaining healthy ecosystems.
The new research was published in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research.
