Hymenoptera and biomimetic surfaces: insights and innovations

• Vinicius Marques Lopez,
• Carlo Polidori and
• Rhainer Guillermo Ferreira

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1333–1352, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.107

• the honeybee, a special microscale hairy compliant texture on abdominal surfaces reduces friction, which is relevant considering that the abdominal sections, by undergoing many reciprocating motions, are at risk of wear or abrasion [50]. Ocular hairs in honeybees reduce airflow at the eye surface by

• flabellum at the tip [75][76] (for a more detailed view of the mouthparts, see [77]). The different mouthparts combined with the characteristics of viscous food can inform the design of efficient viscous micropumps [78]. For instance, the galea ridges on the mouthparts of an Italian honeybee (Apis mellifera

• [78][80]. Additionally, the interaction between bee mandibles and propolis highlights the potential for developing anti-adhesive surfaces [81]. Bioinspired surfaces based on honeybee mandibles have been shown to reduce propolis adhesion by over 40% compared to control surfaces, demonstrating

Biomimetics on the micro- and nanoscale – The 25th anniversary of the lotus effect

• Matthias Mail,
• Kerstin Koch,
• Thomas Speck,
• William M. Megill and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 850–856, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.69

• artificial leaves were used to investigate the influence of wax chemistry and surface wettability on the development of Blumeria graminis, the pathogenic wheat powdery mildew. In “Interaction between honeybee mandibles and propolis”, Saccardi et al. [12] report on the honeybee propolis, a substance used by

Interaction between honeybee mandibles and propolis

• Leonie Saccardi,
• Franz Brümmer,
• Jonas Schiebl,
• Oliver Schwarz,
• Alexander Kovalev and
• Stanislav Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 958–974, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.84

• hypothetically could have developed evolutionary anti-adhesive strategies. The honeybee (Apis mellifera) was identified as an analogue model since it collects and processes propolis, which largely consists of collected tree resin. Propolis is a sticky substance used by bees to seal their hive and protect the

• indicate that the medial surface of the mandible is covered with a fluid substance that reduces propolis adhesion. First results suggested that the surface pattern does do not have a direct effect on propolis adhesion. Keywords: adhesion; Apis mellifera; bee mandibles; honeybee; propolis; Introduction

• development process that led to the anatomical investigation of honeybee mandibles. The hypothesis is that animal species that regularly have close contact with resinous plants or even actively harvest resins may have developed counter-stickiness strategies. This is because animals that permanently stick to a