As a subscriber, you are shown 80% less display advertising when reading our
articles.

Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local
services.

These adverts enable local businesses to get in front of their target audience – the local
community.

It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need
as much support as possible during these challenging times.

The importance of bees for pollinating wild plants and crops is well known. If we lose the bees, we lose our food. But this is only part of the picture. Bees also support a hidden network of other species, sometimes as mutual partners, sometimes as prey, sometimes as other unwilling victims.

Many organisms depend on bees for survival, and many of these interactions are not mutually supportive. Some predators focus on bees, for example bee wolves (Philanthus triangulum), capture bees to feed their young in their underground nests.

Crab spiders, also known as the white death spider, are often found camouflaged on the top of flowers. They wait for bees to sip on some nectar and then the spider consumes the bee, and afterwards vomits the corpse back up.

It’s not just insects, vertebrates depend on bees too. Birds such as bee‑eaters and great tits, as well as some species of bat consume bees as part of their diet, while badgers and foxes often raid nests for larvae and honey. And, of course, humans have been eating honey from before there were written records.

Playing host to unwelcome guests

Around 40% of animals are actually parasites and bees support a wide range of these species. The wingless fly Braula coeca, sometimes referred to as the bee louse, lives on honey bees, feeding on their secretions. Though small, these parasites are a constant presence in some colonies.

Another parasite, Sphaerularia bombi, the nematode (a type of worm-like creature), enters bumblebee queens during hibernation. Once inside they inflate, filling much of the queen’s body. When she emerges in the spring, this queen has been neutered by the parasite and is no longer able to find a new family. She instead just acts as a vehicle to spread the parasite to new sites.

Some bees need other bees to help them survive. Cuckoo bees infiltrate the nests of bumblebees. After they gain access they suppress the bumble bee queen and force her workers to raise their young.

Invading the lives of bees

Sometimes parasitic interactions go one step further and ultimately kill the bee by spending part of their lifecycle within their host. Strepsiptera are an unusual insect, which most people may not have heard of. Stylops are one genus of Strepsiptera which live in the abdomens of bees, visible only by a small protrusion in the abdomen. But when it is time for Stylops to mate they explode from the abdomen of their bee host, killing it.

Bee flies definitely deserves a mention, as they bear a striking resemblance to bees. In the UK, species such as Bombylius major dance around flowers with their fuzzy, bee‑like bodies. While the adults are harmless and actually serve a role as pollinators themselves, their larvae are parasitoids of solitary mining bees. Parasitoids are defined as those that live on (or in) their host eventually killing it, a subset of parasites. The females flick their eggs into the entrances of bee nests and when they hatch, the larva consumes bee eggs or young larvae before feeding on the pollen stores.

Using bees to hitch a ride

Some species just use bees for transport. Mites such as Chaetodactylus attach themselves to solitary bees in order to travel between nests. Their larvae however, are less benign. They greedily consume the pollen stores of nests, occasionally eating eggs.

Perhaps even weirder however are the trigulins (or larvae) of blister beetles. These often cluster around flowerheads. They wait for bees, only to then climb on board for a free ride – using them as a free taxi to a nest where they feed on its contents with a particular fondness for bee eggs.

Pseudoscorpions are a distant relative of scorpions. They bear a striking resemblance to true scorpions, but these instead of carrying a sting in their tail, use the bee for a free ride. Hanging on to the bees with their pincers they use the bees as a taxi, but in their case just as a way to save energy on long-distance travel.

In the end, bees – whether they are solitary bees, mining bees, honey bees or bumble bees – are far more than pollinators. They support a much wider ecosystem. Countless other organisms rely on bees as hosts, prey, transport, or providers of food and shelter every day. Without bees we would not only lose those plants they pollinate but also those animals that need the bees to feed them and help them reproduce.

From hidden coves on the Durham coast to wide, remote sands in Northumberland, the region has a scattering of under-the-radar beaches where visitors can enjoy fresh sea air, long walks and a far more peaceful atmosphere than at the busier seaside favourites.

Hawthorn Hive

Hawthorn Hive on the Durham Heritage Coast is one of the region’s best hidden spots. It has a rugged, secluded feel that makes it popular with walkers and photographers rather than crowds of day-trippers.

One visitor described the wider coastal walk to Hawthorn Hive as “a cracking walk with lots of variety and interest,” while another said the views along the cliffs were “some of my favourite views on the County Durham coast.”

Easington Beach

Easington Beach in County Durham offers a more open, understated seaside experience.

It suits longer walks and quiet visits, with visitors tending to favour it for the space and the natural setting rather than any resort-style facilities.

The wider East Durham coast is often praised for its “scenic and atmospheric feel”, giving this stretch of shoreline a “quiet charm”.

For people looking for a low-key escape to the coast, it is an easy place to spend a slow afternoon.

Horden Beach

Horden Beach has a similarly relaxed atmosphere and remains one of the less obvious choices for a North East beach day.

It does not have the polish of some better-known seaside destinations, according to visitors, but that is part of its appeal for visitors who prefer somewhere simple and uncrowded.

It is the kind of beach that works best for a peaceful wander rather than a packed family day out.

That local, stripped-back feel gives it a quieter character that many visitors are looking for, or that’s what people online are saying.

Gordon’s Bay

Gordon’s Bay in South Shields is a tiny, hidden cove that feels well away from the busier beach spots, per reviews on TripAdvisor.

It is best enjoyed as part of a coastal walk, offering a secluded alternative to the main seaside areas nearby.

By contrast, Seaburn is one of the region’s better-known beaches, with one visitor calling the promenade and sands “wonderful for walking along with tremendous views.”

Another review said it was “very good” and added, “It will be better once Seaburn gets finished.”

Gordon’s Bay offers the quieter side of that same stretch of coast, making it a good choice for people who prefer tucked-away spots to the more obvious seaside stops.

Ross Back Sands

Ross Back Sands in Northumberland may be the most remote-feeling of the five.

Visitor reviews repeatedly describe it as “peaceful and beautiful”, with one reviewer saying, “This beach is stunning; I’ve been many times and never encountered more than a few people here.”

Another said, “Absolutely brilliant. Apart from the sound of the sea, it is peace itself.”

Near Bamburgh, it has broad sands, big skies and a strong sense of solitude, making it a favourite with walkers and birdwatchers.

The co-ord is a great option for the summertime

With summer quickly coming up, you might be planning some day trips to the beach when the weather is nice. It can be useful to have an outfit that is easy to throw over your swimwear to pop into town.

Tesco’s clothing brand, F&F, has just released the F&F Edit Pure Cotton Embroidered Lace Trim Co-ord Shirt in Cream that can be paired with the matching F&F Edit Pure Cotton Lace Insert Wide Leg Trousers in Cream. The shirt has been designed “with a collared neckline and button up fastening” and has “embroidered accents and lace trims”.

The trousers have a similar style with “pretty lace inserts” and an elasticated to make them extra comfortable. Both the shirt and trousers are being sold for £25 each.

The set was shared to the Tesco F&F Instagram page, which currently has 890K followers. The post was captioned: “Cool, calm and unexpectedly collected. #FandFClothing. #StyleItOut.”

If you want to get your hands on the shirt or trousers from this set, you can go to Tesco website to browse all of its clothes. You can also go in person to a Tesco store with a clothing department.

If this co-ord is not quite in-line with your style, Boden has many alternative options. There are these Belgravia Linen Shorts that you can wear with the Sofia Embroidered Linen Top or this Short Collared Towelling Dress, which reviews say is “great to throw over swimwear”.

New Look also has plenty of items in stock for the summer. There is Off White Dobby Texture Beaded Embroidered Trim Kaftan Dress that would be light and airy for the summer or this Green Crepe Palm Tree Print Tiered Midi Skirt, which reviews say is “very flattering”.

With a Switch 2 price increase looming, it sounds like Nintendo is seriously considering supporting the original Switch for longer than expected.

Ahead of the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch, Nintendo made it clear that it wasn’t immediately pulling the plug on Switch 1, not when it still had a sizeable audience and the older console was a lot more affordable.

Looking at Nintendo’s release schedule, though, you’d be forgiven for thinking support was wrapping up. So far, the only wholly new Switch 1 games it’s had this year are the new Tomodachi Life and Pokémon Champions, while Rhythm Paradise Groove will follow in July.

Everything else, from Yoshi And The Mysterious Book to the Star Fox remake, is Switch 2 only, but it sounds like Nintendo might have more Switch 1 games in the pipeline than previously assumed.

This is based on comments made by Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa during a Q&A as part of the company’s latest financial report on the 2026 fiscal year, which ended in March.

‘I believe it is important that we consider how to expand the entire software business, including titles for both Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, instead of focusing only on sales of Nintendo Switch 2 software,’ said Furukawa.

Unless Nintendo is thinking of pivoting to PC releases or something (which isn’t happening until pigs learn to fly), Furukawa can only be suggesting that further Switch 1 games are at least being talked about, if not already scheduled for the future.

This could also mean Nintendo, in response to the current financial climate, will pull back from Switch 2 exclusives slightly and encourage more cross-gen releases.

It won’t stop Switch 2 exclusives completely, since it needs them to sell the console (plus, Furukawa’s already promised a ‘robust’ line-up of Switch 2 games), but the Switch 2 stands to become a harder sell thanks to the upcoming price hike.

Only 40% of Tomodachi Life players own a Switch 2, according to Furukawa, so there’s clearly a large market of Switch 1 owners that are in no rush to get a new console any time soon.

Nintendo, like everyone else, has had problems releasing as many games on Switch 2 as it did in the previous generation. It doesn’t have Wii U ports to fall back on, like it did with the Switch 1, but more lower budget, quicker to make last gen games could potentially fill that gap.

Don’t miss Gaming news! Add us as a Preferred Source

As a loyal GameCentral reader, we want to make sure you never miss our articles when searching for gaming stories. We have all the latest video games news, reviews, previews, and interviews, with a vibrant community of highly engaged readers.

Click the button below and tick Metro.co.uk to ensure you see stories from us first in Google Search.

Add us as a Preferred Source

Advertisement

More Switch 1 games could also represent a cost-effective way to maintain lower profile franchises, such as F-Zero or Metroid. Metroid Prime 4 was a flop but Metroid Dread was very successful and a sequel doesn’t really need the Switch 2, if Nintendo are leery of spending too much on the franchise.

More retro re-releases are also viable, especially older Pokémon games since Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, which are playable across Switch 1 and Switch 2, were tremendous successes.

It’s also interesting that Furukawa’s comment was in response to a question about why sales for Mario Kart World (the Switch 2’s best selling game) had slowed down, after Nintendo stopped selling the console bundle.

He refrained from giving an exact answer, although he did describe Mario Kart World as an ‘evergreen’ game that ‘we would like to continue selling throughout the lifecycle of Nintendo Switch 2.

‘Going forward, we will continue to convey its appeal to consumers to expand its popularity as an evergreen title.’ That presumably means DLC additions and not just the small gameplay updates Nintendo’s released for the game, although he gave no hint as to when this might happen.

Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter.

To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here.

For more stories like this, check our Gaming page.

MORE: Xbox can never go back to exclusives and Halo on PS5 is the proof of that

MORE: Forza Horizon 6 overtakes Pokémon as the top-rated game of 2026 so far

MORE: Two new Xbox controllers have leaked and one of them is tiny

In his 3,700-word article, headlined The Silence that Meets the Rape of Palestinians, Kristof wrote that “there is no evidence that Israeli leaders order rapes. But in recent years they have built a security apparatus where sexual violence has become, as a United Nations report put it last year, one of Israel’s ‘standard operating procedures’ and ‘a major element in the ill treatment of Palestinians’.”

‘We truly hope things can be changed’, Clarissa Street’s loved ones said following the conclusion of an inquest into her death

The devastated loved ones of a young woman who died amid ‘gross failings’ in her hospital care broke down in tears as a coroner concluded she ‘more than likely’ would have survived if she had received ‘appropriate’ treatment.

Clarissa Street, 24, from Rochdale, was left corridor late at night at Royal Oldham Hospital for more than a hour. She was handed an oxygen mask that wasn’t connected to anything while suffering from a ‘massive’, undiagnosed blood clot on the lungs.

A doctor later carried out two procedures that were ‘not medically required’ and ‘precipitated’ a fatal cardiac arrest – the result of a pulmonary embolism, Rochdale Coroners’ Court heard.

Click here to hear the latest from Manchester’s courts in our newsletter

Clarissa – a University of Manchester graduate from Castleton who studied sociology and earned the Dean’s Award for her dissertation – had been feeling unwell for several days. She suffered bouts of vomiting and couldn’t sleeping before she collapsed and lost consciousness.

Her boyfriend rang an ambulance and she was taken to Royal Oldham at around 11.25pm on August 13, 2024. The inquest into Clarissa’s death heard a paramedic suggested she was ‘overreacting and having a panic attack’ when she was passed over to triage staff.

She had previously experienced a provoked pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis, in 2017, and had taken blood thinners for several months afterwards.

After she arrived at Royal Oldham, Clarissa was given an oxygen mask that wasn’t connected to anything ‘to try and regulate her breathing’ and spent more than an hour in a corridor before being transferred, the inquest heard.

Recording her conclusion on Friday (May 15), area coroner Catherine McKenna said there were ‘serious failings’ in Clarissa’s triage and the initial management of her treatment.

She said Clarissa had a National Early Warning Score (NEWS) of eight, meaning she was ‘critically ill’. That fact was not escalated and she didn’t receive the ‘care and attention her condition required’, Ms McKenna added.

The coroner said decision the decision not to hook up her oxygen mask was ‘not based on recognised nursing practice’. That fact, and the ‘failure to act on observations that showed she was acutely unwell’ were ‘gross failings’, she added.

Those failings did not, however, cause Clarissa’s death, Ms McKenna said. After being transferred to higher care shortly before on August 14, a doctor failed to obtain and consider Clarissa’s full medical history; didn’t review the results of an ECG; and ‘misinterpreted’ the readings on a bedside cardiac monitor, the hearing was told.

The doctor then carried out a Valsalva manouvre – a breathing technique performed by exhaling forcefully against a closed airway – and carotid sinus massage, intended to slow heart rate and lower blood pressure.

Ms McKenna said those were not ‘medically required’; were ‘inappropriate’; and ‘precipitated’ the cardiac arrest Clarissa suffered. The coroner said those were ‘basic care failings’ that were ‘contributing factors in her death’.

Ms McKenna said she was not satisfied those errors were ‘gross failings’, and so was unable to record a finding of neglect. The coroner said that ‘in no way minimises the gravity with which the court regards these failings’.

She said she agreed with expert evidence that Clarissa would have had a ‘more than 50 per cent chance’ of survival if she had not gone into cardiac arrest.

Ms McKenna, who recorded a narrative conclusion, said that: “I find that had Clarissa receivied appropiate care and treatment from the time she arrived, a primary diagnosis of pulmonary embolism would have been confirmed. More than likely she would have survived this acute episode.”

A number of Clarissa’s family members were in court. They burst into tears as Ms McKenna delivered her findings. The coroner thanked her loved ones for the ‘dignity’ they had shown during the proceedings and told them: “I am truly sorry for your loss.”

In a statement issued following the hearing, her family said: “We are truly devastated about the loss of our favourite person Clarissa. She will forever live on in our hearts and minds. We will always be shaped by the impression she left on all of us.”

They said they believed she was ‘treated as an overreacting young woman’ and that they ‘truly hope things can be changed’ to stop other families suffering similar tragedies.

Self-made millionaire Mark Tilbury has shared the results of his supermarket price comparison experiment in which he bought the same items from Tesco, Home Bargains and a BP petrol station to find out which offers the best value for money

A self-made millionaire has revealed the results of a shopping experiment where he bought items from Tesco, Home Bargains and a BP petrol station to find out which offers the best value for money. Mark Tilbury purchased the same four items from all three retailers to settle the debate once and for all.

The entrepreneur picked up a sandwich, a 500ml bottle of Coca Cola, a large bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate and a packet of hay fever relief tablets from each outlet before heading to TikTok to share his verdict. His first stop was the petrol station, which housed a Wild Bean Cafe and an M&S Simply Food store inside.

“This totalled £12.40,” Mark revealed as he returned to his vehicle. “Ouch.”

He then made his way to a Tesco Extra superstore. “This is most people’s go-to – the supermarket,” Mark continued. There, the very same four items set him back £7.40.

“That was nearly half of the price of the petrol station and I got a free packet of [McCoy’s Thai Sweet Chicken] crisps,” he enthused.

Mark wrapped up his experiment with a visit to Home Bargains. “I then went to this discount store where everything is supposed to be cheap,” he said.

But did it deliver? “As I was grabbing the items, I realised that it’s actually quite expensive,” Mark claimed. His shop came to £7.25 – just 15p less than his Tesco total.

“So the cheapest was the discount store, but they didn’t give me a free packet of crisps,” he concluded.

The results prompted one TikTok user to declare: “The way we all just trust the most expensive store to be the best quality is a scam.”

Another viewer agreed, saying: “This is a great breakdown of how ‘cheap’ branding can be deceptive. Showing the actual math behind the supermarket versus the discount store helps people shop smarter.”

Though a third observer noted: “The antihistamine he brought at the bargain store [Home Bargains] was fexofenadine rather than loratadine/cetirizine, which is always more expensive anyway even when generically branded.”

In an earlier video, Mark disclosed he left school at 16 without any qualifications or money. “No-one believed in me – especially my teachers,” he said.

And in his first role manufacturing wooden bins, he alleged he was “bullied” and earned less than £2.50 hourly. “I decided to quit and start my own business – it was a big risk,” Mark explained.

“30 years later I run two multi-million pound companies and I have grossed over £50 million. I have a dream house, but most importantly I have the freedom to spend time with my family.”

Emerging details about Hantavirus, the illness responsible for three deaths on board a British cruise ship, have raised concerns it could be transmitted via sex.

According to a 2023 study in the journal Viruses, the rat borne virus can survive in human semen for up to six years after that person became infected.

The Spiez Laboratory, a Swiss government institute tasked with fighting nuclear, biological and chemical threats, investigated a 55-year-old man who had previously had the Andes strain of the hantavirus.

Researchers discovered that although there was no longer any trace of the virus in man’s blood, urine and respiratory tract, it was still detectable in his semen 71 months later.

But does this mean you could catch hantavirus from having sex with someone who had previously fallen ill? And should we be treating it as an STI? We asked a doctor to give us the lowdown.

How can hantavirus live in semen?

‘The testes and male reproductive tract are what we call “immune privileged” sites, meaning the immune system does not patrol them as aggressively as it does other parts of the body,’ Dr Suzanne Wylie tells Metro.

‘This is partly because sperm cells are biologically unusual and could otherwise trigger immune reactions, so certain viruses are able to persist there for prolonged periods even after they have disappeared from the blood and respiratory tract.’

The study makes it clear that yes, hantavirus can survive in semen for a long time, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s highly infectious.

The GP and medical adviser for IQdoctor says viruses such as Ebola and Zika can behave in this way, and standard advice for those infected is to wear condoms whenever they have sex to prevent potential transmission.

Dr Wylie completely understands the concern that you could be exposed to the virus via unprotected sex.

‘It’s important to stress that confirmed sexual transmission of hantavirus remains exceptionally rare and the evidence is still very limited,’ she explains. ‘At the moment it’s more of a serious scientific and public health question than evidence of a widespread new route of transmission.’

If you’ve currently got hantavirus you shouldn’t be having sex with anyone because the disease can spread through prolonged contact.

If you’ve recovered from Hantavirus, it’s not standard practice for doctors to recommend you wear a condom for a period of time after the illness but Dr Wylie say that could change if more research determines the traces in semen could be infectious.

As part of practicing safe sex it’s wise to use condoms regardless of whether you’ve been unwell or not to protect against STIs.

Could this affect women in a similar way?

In short, there’s not enough evidence to know if the virus could live in the vaginal or reproductive tissues in the same way it lives in semen.

‘Biologically the testes are somewhat unique because of their immune-protected environment, so it may not behave identically in females,’ Dy Wylie says.

‘That said, researchers will almost certainly now start looking more carefully at persistence in female reproductive tissues as well.’

Could I catch hantavirus six years later?

Potentially yes, if you have sex with someone who had the virus some years ago, there’s a possibility you could catch it from them, even if they themselves have recovered.

‘That doesn’t necessarily mean large numbers of recovered patients are infectious for years, but it does mean the assumption that recovery automatically equals zero transmission risk may not always be true for every hantavirus strain, particularly Andes virus,’ Dr Wylie explains.

If you’re wondering if this means it should be considered an STI, the expert says most clinicians wouldn’t currently describe it as one.

‘This is because its primary mode of transmission remains exposure to infected rodents and their droppings, and person-to-person spread overall is still uncommon outside certain Andes virus outbreaks in South America,’ she adds.

‘However, if further studies confirm viable virus can persist in semen and be sexually transmitted long after recovery, then sexual transmission would clearly need to be recognised as an important secondary route.’ 

Do you have a story to share?

Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.

MORE: Reaction to Virgin Island’s ‘vagina sniff’ moment doesn’t pass the smell test

MORE: Hantavirus patient put on artificial lung after contracting ‘most severe’ condition

MORE: British man hauled out of Italian bar when he was meant to be in quarantine for hantavirus