Julia Hubler, a junior at the University of Arizona, is researching bumblebees with Dr. Anna Dornhaus's Ecology & Evolutionary Biology lab, in Tucson, AZ. They are trying to unravel the mystery behind the existence of small bumblebees. Though size variation among any social insects is rare, bumblebees produce a variety of differently sized worker bees for as yet unknown reasons. This bumblebee size difference has puzzled scientists for years.

In the Dornhaus social insect lab, the main question is "what is the purpose of small bumblebees?"  Previous studies have shown that the larger bees are better at foraging and that smaller bees tend to do more brood care. However, it is unknown whether or not the small bees are actually better at this task.

"My project is looking at whether or not the small bees are better at brood care or a different in-nest activity, like cleaning," said Hubler.

The small bumblebees are more often found in the nest, so Hubler hypothesizes that they are better at taking care of the developing larvae and pupae. She has manipulated colonies of bees to have either only large, only small, or a mix of workers. She hopes her results will show which colony is the best at producing offspring.

Preliminary results so far suggest that the small bees and large bees are equally skilled at brood care. If this is indeed the case, then the mystery of the small bees remains unsolved.

Hubler, who graduated from Glendale's Mountain Ridge High School, is an Ecology and Evolutionary Biology major. She is part of UBRP and is supported in part by a grant to the University of Arizona from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Julia Hubler, UBRPer in Dr. Anna Dornhaus's lab, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology