MARCH 25, 2024 — As flowers begin to bloom and temperatures increase during the spring season, bees emerge from their hives. They set off into the world to forage nectar, pollen and water within a five-mile radius of their homes. Their highest peak of foraging takes place in April and May.
On Monday, April 8, a total solar eclipse will take place across North America. The moon will slowly position itself between the Earth and the sun, draping a shadow over portions of the Alamo City known as the path of totality. The UTSA Main Campus will be on the inner edge of the path of totality, where daylight will transform to a full-moon night.
Ferhat Ozturk, an assistant professor of practice in the UTSA Department of Integrative Biology, will take the celestial opportunity to discover more about bee behavior. He is leading the project with Mariah Hopkins, professor of instruction and assistant department chair in the UTSA Department of Integrative Biology.
To date, only a handful of published papers exist on the topic.
“Different animals have been analyzed during eclipses, like in zoos for example, for decades. But bees are very under researched,” Ozturk said. “This will be very valuable data.”
Preceding the annular eclipse in October, Ozturk nestled recording devices into beehives to capture how bees behave during the progression of the solar eclipse. He’s continuing his study with the total solar eclipse just two weeks away.
Bees have their own circadian rhythm like we have. When the sun starts rising, bees exit from their homes to forage. As the sun sets, they return home. They find their way with the polarization the of the sunlight,” Ozturk explained.
Sunlight helps guide bees as they search for nectar and bring it back to their hives. Even during a cloudy day, there is still available sunlight for bees to orient themselves in the world.
“Most of them start coming back home when it gets darker. They feel the sunlight decrease. But during eclipse time if they have gone a little farther outside the five-mile radius, they’ll likely settle on a flower,” Ozturk said. “I don’t know what they are feeling, but they may feel that it’s dark and they cannot go home so it’s better to take some kind of sleep or rest on the flower. And again, when the eclipse is over, they just return to foraging.”
Ozturk, Hopkins and a team of UTSA undergraduate students will head out to the beehives an hour before the total solar eclipse to set up acoustic and visual recording devices. The team will record how bees act before, during and after the eclipse.
“We want to see if they’re humming, if they continue their dances or if they’re crowding the entrance of the hive. We’ll also be enjoying the eclipse at the same time. We have our eclipse glasses,” Ozturk said.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
This academically rigorous mathematics-based summer enrichment program prepares middle and high school students for advanced studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Participants learn about problem-solving systems, develop greater awareness of STEM careers and strengthen their research skills.
UTSA Main CampusArchaeology 101 will introduce campers to archaeology and build on learned skills through experimental activities (like cave painting, weaving, and garbology).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusThe camp exposes rising high school juniors, rising seniors and incoming college freshman to the many facets of the criminal justice system. Students will have opportunities to learn the functions of police in society and apply scientific theories to criminal investigations by examining a mock crime scene.
UTSA Main CampusThe Academy for Teacher Excellence Research Center invites you to join us for the Summer Bridging Institute. This institute will focus on being lifelong growers and continually seeking to increase our skills as educators.
UTSA Downtown CampusArchaeology 201 will briefly go over the foundations of archaeology and related skills, followed by a different topic over the course of this week (like skeletal analysis, global cultures, and more).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusCraft a comic to create your own narrative and find your voice through storytelling. Participants will learn to create characters that are self-reflective and through a community lens.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusCome enjoy a discussion on art as a self expression in the age of moving technology and telling your story with a community.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusThe University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.