Welcome to Wildlife Diaries. This is a collaboration between the Museum of Zoology and Cambridge University Botanic Garden, sharing the wildlife of the Garden as spring arrives. Join us for a special livestream at 5pm on April 1, when we will be joined by a panel of wildlife experts ready to answer your questions: We have been inspired by the naturalists of the past – … Continue reading Wildlife Diaries from the Botanic Garden
Ever wondered how bees communicate with each other to work as a team? Learn about the important job these pollinating insects carry out. Play our ‘Talk like a Bee’ game and discover how bees can ‘smell’ each other when visiting flowers, and find out how we can give these insects a helping hand by building your very own bee-friendly winter refuge. Insect communication Insects can … Continue reading Busy Bee Communication
It’s easy to think of ways animals need plants. We need them for food and shelter, and they provide us with oxygen to breathe. But plants need animals too, and one way they need animals in for pollination. What is pollination? How does it work? Why is it important? Find out in this week’s Nature Classroom. These activities support learning in the following areas: Identify … Continue reading Pollinators
Have you seen any bumblebees this summer? They often look more round and furry than other bees. They visit flowers to collect nectar and pollen, helping to pollinate plants as they go! Learn more about bumblebees from Ed Turner in the video below, or scroll down to get started on your Crafty Creature: Creating your bumblebee… You will need: Cardboard Wool or string(we’ve used yellow … Continue reading Create a Bumblebee
Have you been following the insect photo diary of Prof Bill Amos of the Department of Zoology? Here it continues with beautiful butterflies, unusual moths, and surprising flies. You can see more of Bill’s photographs on the blog: An Insect A Day for bee fly, orange tip buttefly and parasitic wasp. An Insect A Day continues for scorpion fly, shield bug and click beetle. An … Continue reading An Insect A Day Part 10
Welcome back to our online Zoology Live festival. Continuing our celebration of all things insects and invertebrate, today we will be exploring insects on the wing. Join us TODAY at 4pm when we will have new films and LIVE interviews with Museum Research Assistant Matthew Hayes, who will he sharing butterfly-spotting tips with us, and dragonfly expert Duncan Mackay, here to answer you questions about … Continue reading Zoology Live Day 2: Minibeasts part 2
Bumblebees are among the best pollinators of any flower-visiting insects. This is for several reasons. Firstly, they are quite large and can fly long distances between flowers, transporting pollen. Secondly, they are covered with long hairs that help the bee to gather pollen but also transfer it from flower to flower. The third reason is because of a special buzzing technique the bees have (sometimes … Continue reading Early morning bumblebees
Museum of Zoology Blog 