The South American Bombus dahlbomii is one of the largest bee species in the world. It can grow up to 1.6 inches long and, because of its size and furry appearance, is colloquially called a “flying mouse.” Native to Chile and Argentina, it is endangered due to invasive bee populations. The Bombus terrestris (European bumblebee) has been imported for decades to promote commercial agricultural growth, but it has spread across the region and competes for territory with native populations.
With BuzzCam, we aim to develop a noninvasive system to monitor wild bee populations to gain further insight into their population density and behavior patterns. Currently, unscalable human observations are the standard for studying and identifying bee species. We propose using novel acoustic sensors and cameras to detect bumblebees and capture their buzzes, which are unique to each species. This multi-modal system could enhance conservation monitoring for bumblebees in their natural habitats.
In March 2024, we deployed this system alongside National Geographic Explorers and professors Marina Arbetman and Cristian A. Villagra Gil in Puerto Blest, Argentina. We collected over 100 hours of recordings and over 10,000 10-second annotated bee buzzes from native and invasive bee species.