After decades in engineering and farming, Toowoomba’s Marc Newman found a surprising new passion in retirement.
Retirement opens the door to countless new hobbies, and for The Village on the Downs resident Marc Newman, it led to a surprising new interest – native bees. After decades of work and routine as an electrical engineer and mushroom farmer Marc has found joy in studying these tiny, unsung heroes of the ecosystem.
Marc used to work with Mount Newman Mining Company in Western Australia, before joining the State Energy Commission. “I became the transmission planning engineer for WA,” Marc recalled. When he left the company, Marc returned to Queensland with the intent to resume his career but pivoted to help his brother on the family farm instead. After struggling through challenging conditions like hail, frost, and drought while growing tomatoes, Marc and his brother decided to give mushroom farming a go. They started small in a shed and after lots of hard work they became skilled growers and joined the Australian Mushroom Growers Association. By the year 2000, Marc and his brother handed over the farm’s management to his nephews, and Marc and his wife Jan decided to retire. “We became interested in eucalypts and native bees and photography,” Marc shares.
This shift marked the beginning of Marc’s journey into the world of native bees—a passion that would grow into something far more significant than he could have ever anticipated. Marc’s fascination with bees began in his own home and now, in retirement, he still finds joy in observing their intricate behaviour. Marc’s knowledge of bees, however, extends far beyond interest. A keen photographer, Marc has uploaded more than 4000 photos to Flickr, most of which are of native bees. Many of Marc’s photos have been used by others, for example, Australian entomologist Megan Halcroft’s pocketbook guide ‘Bees and other Beneficials Insects’ features several of Marc’s photos. Not only this, ecologist Dr Kit Pendergast has used Marc’s photos in a document on the design of bee hotels.
His interest in these incredible pollinators began with a chance encounter in a friend’s yard in Stanthorpe. “It was just gone dark, and I noticed a bunch of insects on a limb that we walked under,” Marc recalled. At that point, he didn’t realise that what he had seen was the beginning of a new and lasting passion. The following week, Jan asked him to take some vegetable scraps out to the garden and bury them.
On his way, he passed a Melaleuca tree, which was covered in insects. Intrigued, he took a closer look. “I grabbed my camera, took some photos— and this was the start of it,” he says. It was then that Marc discovered an unexpected sight: about 400 native bees roosting on the tree. These bees, he learned, were males from solitary species, which do not stay with the females. Instead, the males roost overnight and head out the next day in search of a mate. Marc found this behaviour fascinating. “It was an amazing event,” he reflects. “And from there, I just got interested.”
Since his initial discovery, Marc has unearthed a wealth of knowledge about native bees, proving that retirement offers the perfect opportunity to dive into new passions and uncover unexpected wonders. Encouraging native Aussie bees to your backyard can enhance pollination, support local biodiversity, and help create a thriving ecosystem, giving you a gorgeous garden year-round.
Marc is a resident at The Village on the Downs, Toowoomba. This article originally featured in edition 5 of The Village Retirement Group’s resident magazine, “Village Living.” Request your copy of the magazine today when you enquire below.
