The Bee's Knees

Europe is warming twice as fast as the global average—and wild bees are running out of time. When spring arrives early or scorching hot, it triggers a survival crisis. We speak with Dr. Cristina Ganuza to understand what's really happening as springs get hotter. Her findings are eye-opening, revealing which bee communities are most vulnerable, and what we can actually do to help.

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What if we designed gardens with bees in mind—not just flowers, but the right flowers for the specific bee species that need them? In this episode, Jessica Gabler, an ecologist and landscape architect, shares her Target Species Planting concept, which identifies which pollen particular bee species need, then creates stunning perennial gardens that provide exactly that nutrition. As urban habitats shift and climate changes, precise pollinator-plant matching may be our best tool for supporting wild bees.

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Soil might not be the first thing you think of when you think about bees—but for most species, it’s home. In this episode, Dr. Marissa Chase shares new research from Minnesota prairies showing that soil sand content, not floral abundance, is the strongest predictor of where bees live. We explore why sand specialists don’t always choose the sandiest sites, what this means for rare and specialized species, and why many restoration projects still struggle to attract the bees they’re designed for. This episode will change the way you think about bee habitat—from the flowers we plant to the ground beneath them.

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Wildflower seed mixes are a go‑to strategy for supporting pollinators — but designing one that actually performs is more complex than it looks. Dr. Uta Müller shares her research on how grasses shape floral outcomes, why diverse mixes are more resilient, and how to design cost-effective mixes without sacrificing bloom. Whether you're enhancing a wildflower strip on farmland or restoring a native meadow, this episode reveals the design choices needed to create pollinator habitat that’s both beautiful and durable.

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How do bumblebees decide which flowers to visit? They weigh colors, shapes, and patterns—but not all at once. In this episode, Dr. Anna Stöckl shares surprising research revealing that bumblebees are strategic learners who constantly trade off the cost of learning new information against the payoff of making accurate choices. Discover how these tiny insects switch strategies based on what's easy to learn, and what a psychological phenomenon called "blocking" tells us about their intelligence. 

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Cities may look sealed and sterile, but Berlin’s sidewalks tell a different story. Dr. Sophie Lokatis reveals how pavement cracks host thriving communities of ground‑nesting bees—and why floral quality, not green space, shapes their success. A surprising look at the hidden biodiversity beneath our feet.

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What if one of the most important numbers in nature has been wrong this whole time? Dr. James Dorey joins us to unpack his team’s groundbreaking global estimate of bee diversity — and why thousands of species may still be missing from the map. We explore surprising hotspots, the bottleneck in documenting biodiversity, and how unnamed species shape conservation, agriculture, and ecosystem resilience. 

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A common household mosquito repellent may be silently harming the bees in your garden. Dr. Kimmo Kaakinen shares his study on how volatilized prallethrin—used in household vaporizers and portable mosquito repellers—impairs bumblebees' ability to navigate home. We learn why a 20-minute exposure can reduce homing success from 37% to just 5% and what this means for colony survival. Learn how understanding these threats gives us real power to make a difference for wild bees.

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What happens if the essential work of Europe’s wild pollinators suddenly disappears? Dr. Arndt Feuerbacher joins us to share insights from his study on how wild bees underpin Europe’s agricultural stability and what their decline could mean for food security around the world. We dig into what needs to change, why managed bees can’t fill the gap, and how local actions can add up to real impact.

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This World Bee Day, discover the gentle ground‑nesting bees powering our ecosystems. Dr. Jordan Kueneman explains how the GNBee project uses community science to map their nests and how you can get involved.

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