Sydney: Australia has a new creepy addition to its wildlife: a bee with devil-like horns. The species, named Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer, was discovered in Western Australia, according to Curtin University.
The bee was found in 2019 by Kit Prendergast from the university’s School of Molecular and Life Sciences while surveying a critically endangered wildflower. Prendergast was immediately struck by the female bee’s tiny horn-like structures on her face, inspiring the “Lucifer” name, a nod to the Netflix TV show.
“This is the first new member of this bee group described in more than 20 years, showing how much life remains to be discovered,” Prendergast said. She emphasized that the discovery highlights the need to protect native bees, especially in areas threatened by mining, where many species remain undocumented.
“Without knowing which native bees exist and the plants they depend on, we risk losing both before we even realize they’re there,” she warned.
Bees are vital pollinators, supporting nearly all flowering plants, yet habitat loss and climate change are pushing many species toward extinction.
(RSS/AFP)
