perspective is international, and so lively that we suspect that all of the authors have heeded the advice of opinion piece authors Alves-dos-Santos and Gaglianone "to leave the comfort of air conditioning and venture into fieldwork, where things happen." Alves-dos-Santos and Gaglianone argue specifically for a renascence of natural history studies, but we think their words apply equally well to all bee scientists. The investigations of Dias Ramos et al. focused on the role of the stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis in sustainable coffee cultivation in Brazil, with special attention paid to off-target impacts of neonicotinoid pesticides. This paper is complemented by a systematic review by Dennis and Gibbs on neonicotinoid effects on Bombus spp. pollinators in Europe and North America. These authors show that we currently know more about the behavioral and reproductive impacts of neonicotinoids on bumblebees than we know about possible alterations in pollination efficiency.Together, these papers document the global impacts of the use of systemic pesticides on bee pollinators and highlight future research imperatives.Another topic on the minds of bee researchers is climate change, specifically the impact on bee populations of warming and changes in precipitation patterns. Oliviera et al. used species distribution modeling and state-of-the-art climate forecasting to predict the impact of warming on bee-pollinated food and cash crops. They examined potential spatial mismatches between the distributions of native bee pollinators and Neotropical plant species such as tropical fruits and coffee. Nunes-Silva et al. modeled the responses to plausible climate change scenarios over coming decades of two species of Amazonian bumblebees, Bombus brevivillus and Bombus transversalis. Their investigations revealed that B. brevivillus is at risk of losing more than 40% of its suitable climate zone extent, but that impacts on B. transversalis were not expected to be as severe, underscoring the importance of identifying species-specific patterns. Gornell and Sickel provided a global overview of gene flow in Bombus populations, correlating genetic structure and environmental variables to inform the design of conservation measures on a changing planet. This accessible review article can serve as an invaluable introduction to bee genetics for those new to the field.The western honey bee, Apis mellifera, is represented in this collection from diverse perspectives. Alger et al. describe the use of UBeeO, synthetic pheromones derived from natural semiochemicals emitted by diseased brood, in measures of hygienic behavior. This team, based in North America (but with assistance from The Bee Lady Apiaries in Queensland, Australia) shared evidence that UBeeO can be used to identify honey bee colonies that are resistant to the parasitic mite Varroa destructor and a wide range of other pathogens, including RNA viruses, microsporidian parasites, and fungal diseases. Such tools are of vital importance to beekeepers at all scales, from backyard hobbyists to large-scale commercial operators.bees at the urban/bushland interface. By using trap nests, they were able to quantify resource competition between introduced honey bees and cavity-nesting native bee assemblages. The result is a set of practical recommendations for honey bee colony management and for planting The interdisciplinarity of modern bee research is evident across but also within each of these studies and reviews. The breadth of topics covered reveals that women in bee science have a dual commitment to addressing pressing 21st-century challenges and seizing the field's most exciting opportunities. Each of the female scientists represented in this collection is endeavoring to extend the pioneering work of past generations of women in apiculture, a list that includes leaders such as Eva Crane , who founded the International Bee Research Association in 1949, and Anna Maurizio, who founded the forerunner of the modern International Commission for Plant-Pollinator Relationships in 1950(Eva Crane Trust, 2026;ICPPR, 2026). It is our hope that this current Research Topic inspires a new generation of scientists to follow their curiosity toward solutions that protect both global food security and the biodiversity of the world's bees.
Fahrbach et al. (Thu,) studied this question.