Tim and I stopped at the shore of Browns Bay by the inlet and watched schools of mullet bubbling and swirling beneath the glinting surface.
By the water’s edge I watched several honeybees hovering over the sand close to my feet. They were landing on small clumps of wet, green seaweed and walking over it – and tasting it! They weren’t interested in the dry seaweed, only the stuff being lapped by the small waves. What would the seaweed be providing them? Perhaps they were thirsty. I was so intrigued that I hoped online and read that honeybees have salt-sensing feet! They prefer slightly salted water and dirty water, which provide additional minerals and vitamins needed for their metabolism. Some honey producers feed seaweed to their bee colonies during lean times and in an effort to counter bee diseases and colony collapses.
Stephanie Pappas, a contributing writer for Live Science, writes about the bees’ salt sensing feet
Edge of Things 