A cute, vividly coloured native bee with a very distinctive buzz is the ABC’s first Australian Insect of the Year.
A total of 13,593 people voted in the inaugural ABC Insect of the Year poll. Just over 50.1 per cent (6,815 votes) chose the blue-banded bee (Amegilla cingulata) from a field of six insect finalists selected by an expert panel.
The common hoverfly (Melangyna viridiceps) received the second highest number of votes with 13.0 per cent of all responses, followed by the Bogong moth (Agrotis infusa) with 11.4 per cent of the vote.
About 9.9 per cent of voters selected the golden stag beetle (Lamprima aurata), 7.9 per cent chose the Lord Howe Island stick insect (Dryococelus australis), while 7.7 per cent voted for the Eltham copper butterfly (Paralucia pyrodiscus lucida).
To read the full article, click here: Blue-banded bee named 2024 ABC Australian Insect of the Year as thousands vote in inaugural poll – ABC News
