Candace Galen

Candace Galen is based at the University of Missouri, in Columbia. And, being a biologist, she thought, why not use this astronomical phenomenon to study a biological one? Specifically: as the skies darkened would daytime pollinators, like bumblebees and honeybees, call it quits "What better activity during an eclipse than to go out with a recorder and record the bees?" "So Galen asked 400 citizen scientists including young students - to place audio recorders in 16 flower patches along the path of totality, in Oregon, Idaho, and Missouri. When they analyzed the audio, they found that during partial eclipse, bee buzzing continued. But when totality hit, the bees went silent and only the conversational buzz of human observers could be heard. Then, as the moon passed and the sun again lit up the sky, the bees regained their buzz