The whole world has a fragile balance. Plants count on insects and birds to transfer the pollen in order for the plants to reproduce. And the insects and birds get nectar to survive. But not many people enjoy being visited by bees, knowing they can be stung. Unfortunately, people also fear bumblebees, even though they don’t sting.
Well, this woman definitely has a story she’ll never forget her whole life. It started one day when she made an unusual friend…
20. One Afternoon, in Scotland
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Fiona Presly was in her garden one day, in Scotland. She saw something weird at her feet, and having a closer look, she discovered it was a huge bumblebee. The poor insect was looking confused, so Fiona scooped it up…
19. She Found the Queen
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Fiona saw that she was actually holding the queen of the hive, so worried about the queen and her hive, the woman decided to place the insect on a flower so that nobody would step on her. But then she saw something was missing!
18. Losing Her Wings
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Unfortunately, Fiona realized why the bee was looking so confused. It had no wings, so it couldn’t fly back to the hive. She let the bumblebee on the flower and when she returned back a few hours later, the queen didn’t move at all…
17. Keeping It Alive
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Then, Fiona realized she could help the injured insect. So, she came back out with some sugar water and thought what else would be of help. Looking at the sky, Fiona saw a storm coming, so she had to take the insect inside her house.
16. Bad Weather
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‘I took her inside that night, kept her warm and fed her more,’ said Fiona. She thought that the next day would be best to take the insect out. But the weather still was too rough for the wingless insect…
15. The Bumblebee Conservation Trust
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… ‘So I kept her inside,’ said the woman. And then Fiona called the Bumblebee Conservation Trust to gather more information on her queen. The specialists believed that the bee might have had a virus in its early life. And that’s not all!
14. Slim Chances
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That virus could have affected its growth of wings, and the bee’s chances of survival were very low, being unable to fly. But then Fiona decided to do something amazing for her new friend.
13. The Queen Bee
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Fiona kept taking care of her bumblebee. She gave it a name: Bee, and she even ‘made a garden for her’, said Fiona. For a bumblebee to get pollen, she needed to walk from flower to flower. So, she made an enclosed garden with flowers.
12. Sugar Water Feast
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Every single day, Fiona would come to see how Bee was doing. When the queen looked a bit down, Fiona would come and give her some sugar water to energize her tiny ‘pet’. And then something unbelievable happened…
11. Bee Was a Grateful Queen
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Fiona would check her wingless friend every day, but in time, the queen bee started to go out and visit Fiona. It seemed that the bee was looking forward to seeing the woman who saved her and cared for her.
10. She’d Walk Toward Fiona
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‘She’d walk toward me and crawl on my hand. She seemed so happy to see me. It made me stop and think—there’s something going on here’. Fiona was truly amazed to see that the bee recognized her caretaker.
9. A Sociable Creature
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‘It was like her whole being came to life. I think she liked the fact that she wasn’t alone,’ said Fiona. And bees do thrive in a hive, with some company, so perhaps Bee wanted it too, even if it wasn’t of her own species.
8. A Mutual Love
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Not only Bee loved spending time with Fiona, but the woman also enjoyed it, ‘We were quite comfortable with each other. There were things going on with this bee that were quite something’, said Fiona.
7. A Long Life
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Usually, queen bumblebees build a nest during the spring and summer and mate, starting her own colony, before she dies in early autumn. But Fiona’s Bee lived longer!
6. Resting on Fiona’s Hand
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But even if her caretaker could extend the insect’s life, she would ultimately pass away. Bee was sleeping on Fiona’s hand when one day, she passed away: ‘I was sad when she died, but I knew it was going to happen.’
5. An Old Queen
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Fiona said that Bee was a lot older than a regular bumblebee would survive and that ‘it had been very special to stay with a wee creature, like Bee.’ The queen survived a few more weeks than expected…
4. Bee Was Buried
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Fiona buried Bee in her garden, with her favorite flowers. Then she said in an interview that her view on insects is very different now: ‘It’s changed my perception of what insects are like. I think there’s an awful lot we don’t know.’
3. It’s a Great Observation
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Lars Chittka, a behavioral ecologist said that Fiona was able to observe a unique emotional attachment of a bee: ‘Sometimes it takes an outsider’s careful observations, such as Mrs. Presly’s, to generate fresh views and prompt important questions.’
2. A Good Question for Science
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Scientists will surely have something new to learn from Fiona’s experiences with the bumblebee and how they interact with humans. But looking at their pictures, it’s clear it was an amazing bond.
1. Friendships Flourished
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If it wouldn’t have been for that day of gardening, Fiona’s discovery of Bee wouldn’t have taken place. It was the beginning of a beautiful and unexpected friendship that has changed everyone’s perspective on bees!
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