Bees Need Meat

It seems intuitive that bees herbivores that eat pollen and nectar.  Fascinating research by Dr. Prarthana Dharampal and Dr. Shawn Steffan has found that the diet of bees can also include a significant portion of microbes which serve as a protein “meat” source.  Their work was recently published in American Naturalist and Proceedings of the Royal Society B and was also featured in Scientific American: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/surprise-bees-need-meat/