A Sting in the Tale would frustrate Dragnet's Sergeant Joe Friday. Author Dave Goulson recounts more than "just the facts" about bumble bees in his engaging and highly informative book. He confesses to much formative pet-keeping and nature-collecting during his youth. He conveys the reader through revealing field studies in England, Scotland, New Zealand, and Tasmania. He introduces colorful doctoral students who collaborate with him on interesting experiments. Throughout, Goulson accessibly explains fascinating aspects of the biology and conservation of bumble bees.
Dr. Goulson, a scientist and professor who has taught at universities in England and Scotland, continues a century-long British tradition of affection for bumble bees and leadership in research about them. In his first book, the scientific treatise Bumblebees: Behaviour, Ecology, and Conservation, Goulson documents the current worldwide body of research. With A Sting in the Tale, he appeals to non-scientists to understand and appreciate his favorite animal.
Goulson devotes chapters to especially notable bumble bee characteristics. In "The Bumblebee Year" chapter, plant enthusiasts will see parallels between bumble bee colonies and annual plants. Analogous to a seed, a mated queen overwinters alone in loose soil or leaf litter. In the spring, she emerges, finds a nest site, lays a first batch of eggs, and provides pollen and nectar to the larvae, all of which develop into female workers. The workers take over foraging and nest duties, while the queen lays more eggs. When the worker population becomes sufficiently large, the colony produces new queens and males. After a new queen mates with a male, usually from another colony, and builds up fat reserves, she finds a place to overwinter alone, repeating the cycle. The old queen, workers, and males all die. In contrast, analogous to perennial plants, honey bee colonies use their sizable honey stores to sustain their queen and thousands of workers throughout the winter.
In "The Hot-Blooded Bumblebee" chapter, Goulson summarizes the research of American Bernd Heinrich, author of Bumble Bee Economics, into endothermy. A bumble bee's thorax temperature must be at least 86 degrees Fahrenheit for the bumble bee to fly. Bumble bees raise their internal temperature by shivering their flight muscles.
In the "Ketchup and Turkish Immigrants" chapter, we learn that bumble bees can "buzz pollinate", vibrating as they grasp a flower, unleashing a shower of pollen. This ability makes bumble bees exceptionally effective pollinators of nightshades, like tomatoes. Greenhouse growers now employ commercially-reared bumble bee colonies. But shipping colonies spreads disease and introduces species outside of their native ranges. Many researchers believe that commercially-reared colonies transported to the U.S. in the 1990's spread exotic diseases to wild populations, causing dramatic declines in once common U.S. species like the Western Bumble Bee (Bombus occidentalis).
In 2006, Dr. Goulson founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust in Great Britain to promote preservation and restoration of suitable habitat as well as celebration of this amazing animal. The Xerces Society supports similar goals in the U.S. for all invertebrates.
While British fauna and flora predominate Goulson's account, the biology and substance apply to North America. A Sting in the Tale offers a stirring chance to listen to one of the world's leading authorities candidly describe his life's work and essentials of what we know about this wonderful creature. I heartily recommend it.
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Top reviews from other countries
S. B. Kroeger
Wonderful - A must-have on your bookshelf!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 25, 2014
