CANBERRA, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- Eight new species of bees native to the Pacific have been discovered by Australian scientists.

In two new studies published on Monday, a team led by Flinders University described a new group of bees found in the Pacific as well as new insights into bird behavior on the Fijian island of Viti Levu.

Flinders University has been conducting field trips to support ecology and conservation work in Fiji in collaboration with the University of the South Pacific (USP) over the last 10 years.

In the first of the new published studies, Flinders University researchers joined counterparts from Fiji, Hawaii and Australia to study bees found in tree canopies.

They identified eight new species of bees belonging to the genus Hylaeus -- found on every continent except Antarctica -- six of which are native to Fiji as well as one new species each in French Polynesia and Micronesia.

The species found foraging in trees in Fiji are the second known native genus of bee to the archipelago.

"Unlike the super-generalist Homalictus bees that inhabit Fiji and likely benefited from ancient human-clearing, the Fijian Hylaeus are likely very vulnerable to anthropogenic clearing and may be critical pollinators in forest habitats," James Dorey, a co-author of the study who completed his PhD at Flinders University, said in a media release.

In the second study, researchers from Flinders University, the University of South Australia and the USP spent three years analyzing the impact of human disturbance and other threats on Fiji's native forest birds.

The authors of both studies, which were funded by the Australian government, wrote that their findings highlighted the potential benefits of Asia-Pacific research collaborations. Enditem

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