Colonies

Slugs help mushrooms start new colonies by spreading spores through their faeces

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Mantleslugs carry spores of dozens of fungal species in their faeces, and some of them even begin to germinate within the moist digestive tracts Life 24 February 2022 By Jake Buehler Mantleslugs feeding on oyster mushrooms Nobuko Tuno Some mushroom-eating slugs may be important – if slow – dispersal vehicles for fungal spores, which the … Read more

Stingless bees: Some colonies have to kill thousands of wannabe queens

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About one-fifth of all Melipona beecheii stingless bee larvae develop as queens, but the colony accepts only one – the rest are executed by worker guards Life 26 January 2022 By Christa Lesté-Lasserre A Melipona beecheii worker bee attacking a newly emerged queen Jorge Ramirez Pech Some stingless bees seem to be able to choose … Read more

Scientists Spot Eerily Sophisticated Patterns in ‘Simple’ Bacteria Colonies

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Bacterial colonies can organize themselves into complex ring-like patterns which have an “intriguing similarity” to developing embryos and were thought to be unique to plants and animals, new research suggests.   Bacterial cells band together in clumps to form tightly packed colonies called biofilms that have a growing reputation for acting strangely like multicellular organisms. … Read more