Underground Bee Mega-Colony Discovered in Ithaca Cemetery

In spring 2022, Cornell University entomology lab technician Rachel Fordyce observed an unexpected swarm of bees while walking the East Lawn Cemetery in Ithaca, New York. After collecting several specimens, she and colleagues confirmed the presence of an estimated 5.5 million individuals of the regular mining bee (*Andrena regularis*) living underground throughout the 1.5-acre site.

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*Andrena regularis* is a solitary, ground-nesting bee. Each female excavates her own tunnel, provisions it with pollen, and lays eggs without a queen or hive structure. Approximately 75 % of all bee species share this underground lifestyle, contrasting sharply with the public image of honeybee colonies.

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• Rachel Fordyce – Laboratory technician, Cornell University Entomology Department.

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• Bryan Danforth – Professor of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, collaborator on the discovery.

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• Cornell University – Provides the entomology expertise and research infrastructure supporting the study.

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• 5.5 million bees estimated across the cemetery.

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• The site’s 1.5 acre area would accommodate >200 typical honeybee hives if the bees were hive-dwelling.

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• Historical records indicate the colony has persisted since at least the early 1900s; the cemetery itself was founded in 1878.

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The cemetery’s sandy soil facilitates easy excavation, while minimal landscaping and low pesticide exposure reduce disturbance. Its proximity to the Cornell Orchards, which bloom each spring, supplies abundant floral resources for foraging bees.

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The study’s authors have launched a global citizen-science program inviting the public to report sightings of underground bees. The goal is to map these populations and protect them from habitat loss.

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Across cultures, bees have been linked to the underworld: the Celts practiced “telling the bees” of a death, ancient Egyptians incorporated honey into embalming, and Greeks believed human souls could be reborn as bees. The cemetery setting thus echoes longstanding symbolic connections between bees and mortality.

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• “I was completely floored,” — Bryan Danforth, Professor of Entomology

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• “telling the bees” — Reference to Celtic practice

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• “So it feels very fitting that, of all places, bees would be finding new life in a place centered around human death.” — Narrative conclusion

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Researchers will integrate citizen-science data to refine distribution maps, assess habitat vulnerability, and develop conservation guidelines for ground-nesting pollinators in similar low-disturbance landscapes.

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