Hatching a Dramatic Plot

National Wildlife, Oct-Nov, 2000

A newly hatched blister beetle larva faces a mission impossible, with no choice about whether or not to accept the job. To survive, the creature must make its way from twigs, grass blades or other vegetation to the interior of a female bee's nest, where it will feed mostly on pollen brought in by the bee.

The solution, it turns out, holds many of the ingredients of an adventure movie: teamwork, a high-risk aerial stunt, sexual deception and a life-or-death outcome. Researchers led by biologist John Hafernik of San Franciso State University recently reported in the journal Nature that beetle larvae clump together in a group-and probably emit scent-to mimic a female bee. They are so convincing that male bees looking for mates hover near and land on the clumps, only to be latched onto by a load of larvae. When the males finally do find real female bees, they deposit larvae on their mates' backs (above) during copulation, and the females then give the hitchhikers a ride to their nests. Mission accomplished.