Which Bee Am I?
HONEYBEE
APPEARANCE
Smaller, Slimmer, and have less hair. Golden brown/yellow and brown stripes.
COLONY SIZE
Large colonies, up to 50,000, to produce excess honey. The entire colony survives the winter.
HONEY PRODUCTION
Produce large surpluses of honey.
STINGER
Barbed stinger, the bee dies after stinging once.
HABITAT
Managed by beekeepers in hives or wild in tree hollows.
BEHAVIOR
Prefers warm, sunny weather and communicates using the famous "waggle dance". Highly social and generally gentle, they only sting to protect their hive.
DIET
Strictly vegetarian; they collect and eat pollen and nectar.
BUMBLEBEE
APPEARANCE
Large, round, and very fuzzy. Black and yellow stripes.
COLONY SIZE
Usually, 50 to 200 bees. Except for the new queen, the entire colony dies in winter.
HONEY PRODUCTION
Only enough honey is produced to sustain the colony.
STINGER
Smooth stinger. Bumblebees can sting repeatedly without dying.
HABITAT
Wild. Nests underground in abandoned rodent burrows or grass.
BEHAVIOR
Excellent at foraging in cool or cloudy weather. Very docile, often referred to as "gentle giants."
DIET
Pollen and Nectar
queens, drones, and workers
queen bees
queen bees
queen bees
The queen is the largest bee in the colony. She develops more fully than the sexually immature workers because she is given what's actually called "royal jelly," a secretion from glands on the heads of young workers. She emerges from her specially constructed cell to mate with 13 to 18 drone male bees, collecting millions of sperm cells
The queen is the largest bee in the colony. She develops more fully than the sexually immature workers because she is given what's actually called "royal jelly," a secretion from glands on the heads of young workers. She emerges from her specially constructed cell to mate with 13 to 18 drone male bees, collecting millions of sperm cells that will last her the rest of her two-to-five-year life. She's the mother of all worker bees in the hive, and, although the name might imply it, a queen has no control of the hive. Her sole function is to serve as the reproducer, laying her own weight in eggs every couple of hours up to 3,000 per day.
drones
queen bees
queen bees
Male bees, called drones, are characterized by eyes that are twice as big as those of worker bees and queens. Drones are stingless but fly fast, as their main function is to be ready to mate with a receptive queen in flight. Drones usually live about 90 days and, in areas with severe winters, are driven out of the hive when it gets too cold.
workers
queen bees
workers
Workers, the smallest bees in the colony, are non-reproducing females. A colony can have 50,000 to 60,000 workers. The lifespan of a worker bee varies with the time of year. Her life expectancy is approximately 28 to 35 days. Workers that are reared in September and October, however, can generally live through the winter. Workers feed t
Workers, the smallest bees in the colony, are non-reproducing females. A colony can have 50,000 to 60,000 workers. The lifespan of a worker bee varies with the time of year. Her life expectancy is approximately 28 to 35 days. Workers that are reared in September and October, however, can generally live through the winter. Workers feed the queen and larvae, guard the hive entrance, and help keep the hive cool by fanning their wings. Worker bees also collect nectar and produce wax comb. The comb is composed of hexagonal cells, which have walls only 2/1000-inch thick but support 25 times their own weight. Honeybees’ wings stroke 11,400 times per minute, thus making their distinct buzzing sound.
life cycle of bees
reproduction
The drones mate with the queen one at a time. The drone will fly over a queen with the intention of positioning itself such that its thorax is above her abdomen.
The mating process takes less than 5 seconds, and when he disengages from the queen, his appendage (endophallus) is ripped off.
Mating usually kills the drone.
The queen will o
The drones mate with the queen one at a time. The drone will fly over a queen with the intention of positioning itself such that its thorax is above her abdomen.
The mating process takes less than 5 seconds, and when he disengages from the queen, his appendage (endophallus) is ripped off.
Mating usually kills the drone.
The queen will only fertilize some of the eggs she lays. Her oviducts hold about 100 million sperm.
EGG STATE
All three castes start life as a newly laid egg in a cell. This state lasts for three days. The queen honeybee determines the sex of each of her eggs. If an egg is fertilized, it will become a worker or queen bee. If the egg remains unfertilized, it will become a drone.
Worker bees are female and can lay eggs as well; however, their eg
All three castes start life as a newly laid egg in a cell. This state lasts for three days. The queen honeybee determines the sex of each of her eggs. If an egg is fertilized, it will become a worker or queen bee. If the egg remains unfertilized, it will become a drone.
Worker bees are female and can lay eggs as well; however, their eggs are unfertilized and will only produce drones.
Queens can hold sperm for up to 4 years. When the worker bees begin to notice the queen bee is slowing, the worker bees will smother the queen to death.
LARVA STATE
LARVA STATE
Three days after the queen lays an egg, it will have developed into a bee larva, with all major systems beginning to form. All bee larvae are fed royal jelly; the number of days the larvae receive this jelly is based on their role in the colony. Queens are fed royal jelly all the way through their hatching process, which is 16 days, while workers and drones are fed it for only 2-3 days.
PUPA STAGE
LARVA STATE
The Pupa Stage begins when worker bees seal the larva's cell with a wax capping. During this time, the resting pupa undergoes metamorphosis to develop adutlt features like wings, legs, and eyes.
During this process, the milky-white pupa slowly darkens. A key indicator of maturation is the eyes shifting from white to pink, then to dark
The Pupa Stage begins when worker bees seal the larva's cell with a wax capping. During this time, the resting pupa undergoes metamorphosis to develop adutlt features like wings, legs, and eyes.
During this process, the milky-white pupa slowly darkens. A key indicator of maturation is the eyes shifting from white to pink, then to dark purple, then to black.
The time a bee spends as a pupa varies depending on its specific role within the colony.
Queen Bees: 7 to 8 Days
Worker Bees: 12 Days
Drone Bees: 14 to 15 Days
adulthood
Once the bee is fully developed, the adult bee chews its way through the wax capping. At this time, the bee assumes highly specialized age-based roles within the colony, depending on its caste.
Roles in the Hive
Worker Bees:
Days 1 -3: Housekeeping and cleaning cells.
Days 4-12: Nursing and feeding the developing larvae.
Days 13-18: Building honeycomb and processing incoming food.
Days 19 -Until Death: Foraging outside the hive for nectar, pollen, and water.
Drones' only purpose is to leave the hive and mate with virgin queens from other colonies.
Quee
Worker Bees:
Days 1 -3: Housekeeping and cleaning cells.
Days 4-12: Nursing and feeding the developing larvae.
Days 13-18: Building honeycomb and processing incoming food.
Days 19 -Until Death: Foraging outside the hive for nectar, pollen, and water.
Drones' only purpose is to leave the hive and mate with virgin queens from other colonies.
Queen Bees are the only fertile females and are responsible for laying eggs to sustain and grow the colony's population.
Bees in the Winter
Honey Bees Do Not Hibernate
Honey Bees survive winter by retreating to their hives, clustering tightly together, and shivering their flight muscles to generate heat.
The Worker Bees help sustain a core temperature of around 91 Degrees Fahrenheit for the Queens by rotating bees from the cold outer shell to the warm center.
WINTER CLUSTERS
The colony reduces in size from tens of thousands to roughly 10,000 to 15,000 bees.
As bees huddle together, the ones on the outside of the cluster shuffle toward the inside once they get cold, helping to ensure no bee freezes.
The cluster slowly moves upward across the honeycomb, consuming stored honey and pollen to fuel their constant movement and heat generation.
