Coming Home
Shawn Lawrence
With pollen on her legs and gold on her coat, this worker honeybee (Apis mellifera) returns home to the hive. She receives no applause, her only purpose is to bring home nectar and/or pollen to ‘share’ with the hive: pollen for the queen’s offspring, nectar for co-workers or for long-term storage to see the colony through lean times. In the Tasmanian/Australian context, she’s as much ‘stealing’ as ‘sharing’, because honeybees are an introduced species and therefore competing for nectar and pollen with native bees, other native insects and native birds. She does not rest in the triumph of arrival but disappears into the collective, where her efforts become manifest. Coming home is not retreat – it’s a contribution.
BEAKER STREET SCIENCE PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZE
This photograph was a finalist in Beaker Street’s annual Science Photography Prize. This highly-respected prize invites amateur and professional photographers to showcase the wonders of our extraordinary part of the world — which is teeming with science and scientists. Finalist images are displayed at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery during Beaker Street Festival each August, with great prizes on offer for Judges’ and People’s Choice winners.
The Beaker Street Science Photography Prize is sponsored by Pennicott Foundation — thank you crew! It would not be possible without the support of Full Gamut, Tasmania’s premier fine art printers, as well as the wonderful Tasmanian businesses who donate prizes.
