Why These Bumblebees Are Wearing Itty-Bitty QR Codes

Gently suck up the bumblebees with a special vacuum. Step two: Place them in the fridge to chill until they’re immobilized. Step three: Remove bees and superglue a sort of tiny, simplified QR code on their backs. Superglue what, you say? Yes, QR codes—a pretty significant upgrade for entomologists. Researchers used to stand over colonies, laboriously tracking the behavior of individual bees. But with this system, called BEEtag, cameras can automatically monitor hundreds of bees all day and night, exposing their personalities and interactions. That is, after the bees warm up from their chilly nap.