Robotic bees could pollinate plants in case of insect apocalypse

Dutch scientists say they can create swarms of bee-like drones to take over if the insects die out

Intensive modern farming methods and the unravelling consequences of global climate change are said to have put the future of the common bee under threat like never before.

But in Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands a group of scientists working on long-term solutions to some of the world's thorniest problems have developed a solution that could have come straight from a sci-fi novel: robotic bees.