Researchers have strapped QR Codes onto thousands of bees, making them the newest members of the “clock-in, clock-out” workforce.
And no, this is not the work of the Queen bee, who wants to micromanage its workers, but rather of entomologists who are studying how far bees venture out to collect food. This interesting experiment came to light when a research paper was published in the journal HardwareX.
Sensors at hive entrances scan the QR Codes, logging each bee’s departure and return time. While previous studies suggest honey bees can forage up to 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) from their hives, researchers suspect this is rare.
The study aims to determine if that distance is biologically accurate and pinpoint just how far these tiny workers really go.
The QR Codes, known as fiduciary tags, function like office badges. The team developed an automatic imaging system with a sensor at the hive entrance to scan each tagged bee as it comes and goes, logging its foraging times. The system records the bee’s unique ID, date, time, temperature, and whether it is entering or exiting.
Now, let’s just hope my boss isn’t reading this—wouldn’t want them getting any ideas! 