From the UK Metro, 18 April 2010:
Bumble bees as big as ‘flying mice’ have been spotted by nature lovers across the country, it has been claimed. But there is no need to worry, experts say, because they are probably not as large as some spotters have made them out to be.
Said Natural History Museum entomologist Stuart Hine: ‘They’re not bigger than they have been before – it’s very much to do with human observation.’
As well as a timely reminder about the foibles of human perception, this story brings to mind the fascinating polymath Gerald Heard. In his book Is Another World Watching?, Heard posits that the only creatures capable of surviving the G-forces involved in alleged flying saucer manoeuvres would be giant bees…from Mars.
