A Virginia university wants to use bees to find dead bodies

George Mason University wants to use bees to find dead bodies. Seriously.

Why it matters: If successful, it could be a gamechanger in murder investigations.

The big picture: The New York Times is the latest to report on GMU's plan to help solve crime with honey bees, which has been in the works since at least early 2021.

• Forensics researchers are able to do this through what's called a "body farm" in Manassas, which recreates an outdoor crime scene with human remains.
• It's the only one on the East Coast so far, per the NYT, and work involving actual bodies (donated for science) began in late May.

How it works: The five-acre "body farm" mimics the graves killers use and as the bodies decompose, they release organic matter that cling onto nearby flowers bees come into contact with.

• Researchers will then see if bees pick up on those chemical compounds and leave traces of them in their beehives and honey.

Between the lines: Bees are known to fly within a five-mile radius of their hive, which means they have potential for helping investigators narrow their search area.

Fun fact: Honey bees have also been trained to detect illegal drugs and explosives.

What's next: Mary Ellen O'Toole, who directs GMU's forensic science program, told the NYT that with more research, bees could one day produce enough probable cause for a search warrant.