Okay, so this Orchid Bee is hands down one of the best-looking bees in the world, right?

But get this… it’s also one of the best-smelling bees in the world!

Sadly, the internet hasn’t developed scratch n sniff technology yet, so you’re just going to have to be content with the scientific explanation.

Despite being called Orchid Bees, it’s actually only the male bees that bother to pollinate orchids. Orchids don’t provide bees with nectar, so the females don’t bother going near them, but the males are more than happy to oblige these fanciful flowers.

Why? Well, male Orchid Bees have evolved uniquely modified legs which allow them to collect and store a variety of strong-smelling compounds that are produced by orchids. Obtaining the fragrance is quite a difficult process for a male bee, and he doesn’t get anything out of it other than a nice perfume.

Scientists initially believed that these fragrances were used to attract females, but experiments have thus far failed to entice any lovely lady Orchid Bees using the aromatic compounds. Instead, it is now suspected that the scents are used to signal the male’s genetic fitness after he encounters a female.

Essentially, the male Orchid Bees are saying “smell me, I’m so strong that I can waste energy collecting perfume instead of foraging for food”.

So guys, if you’re in a bit of a dry spell, start pollinating orchids just for the fun of it – apparently the ladies love it 🤷‍♂️

–

PS. Like many bees, Orchid Bees sleep by chomping down on a leaf and locking themselves in place for the night, and I will never get over how cute that is!

–

Orchid Bee (Exaerete sp.), Minca, Colombia