Honey Bee
Honey Bee
Honey bees probably originated in tropical Africa and spread from South Africa to northern Europe and the Usa, and eastwards into India and China. They are now found worldwide except at the poles. A honey bee hive is an extraordinary places. Tens of thousands of bees work together for the greater good of their colony-building and maintaining the hive, finding food, fending off predators, feeding and rising the young. There is a strict caste system in force inside the hive. A queen (a fertile female) lays eggs; a few hundred drones (males) exist to mate with her; and many thousands of workers (sterile females) do the daily tasks. Tireless producers of honey and first-class pollinators of many crops, honey bees are one of the most beneficial of all insects.
Eggs by the Thousands
Shortly after metamorphosing from a pupa into a bee, the queen takes her first and only nuptial flight. She mates in mid-air with one or more drones, which then die. String their sperm inside her; she transforms into an eggs-laying machine, producing up to 2000 eggs a day during the warmer months. Each egg is stored in a honeycomb cell at the centre of the hive. If the queen releases sperm onto the eggs, it hatches into a worker. if she doesnt it develops into a drone. After a few days, a tiny worm-like larva crawls from the egg and is fed by workers. The larva grow and develops within the cell, becoming a pupa, before emerging as an adult bee. The workers choose a few larvae to become queens, feeding them on a protein-rich subtance called royal jelly, which they produce in glands in their heads. Potential queens may replace the old queen or fly away to start new colonies.
Part of bodies
- Five eyes-three small ones on top and large compound eye on each side of the head help the bee to distinguish colours
- Antennae are slender, jointed feelers on the front of the head which have tiny sense organs for smell
- Each front leg has a notched structure which it uses to clean dirt from its antennae
- Pollen is carried in areas called baskets on the workers hindlegs
- Four wings enable the bee to fly forwards, backwards, sideways or to simply hover
Statistics
- status – common
- social unit – colony
- length – 0.3-2.7 cm
- weight – 0.1-0.2 g
- breeding season – spring
- incubation period – 21-24 days
- number of eggs – up to 2,000 eggs a day
- breeding interval – continuous
- diet – nectar, honey and pollen
- lifespan – queen: 5 years; drones: 4-6 weeks; workers: 6 weeks
Myth or fact
Honey bees have developed an intriguing form of communication. When a foraging worker finds a new source of nectar and pollen, it returns to the hive and dances in front of other workers. The bees movements seem to tell the other bees in which direction the food is located as well as its distance from the hive. It also produces a scent which scientists believe may provide further information, including the type of flower.
