Honey bees

Quick Take

• Honey bee colonies are collapsing worldwide, yet scientists still don't know why. See the colony collapse mystery →
• Bees evolved from predatory hunters, so what flipped their diet upside down 100 million years ago? Explore their predatory past →
• Any female larva can seize the queen's power if she's fed the right secret ingredient. Discover the queen's secret →
• Honey bees aren't actually native to most of the world. So how did they end up everywhere? Trace their global spread →

The small honey bee, long a symbol of hard work and cooperation, has one of the most complex social arrangements and caste systems in the entire animal kingdom. The defining characteristic of this insect is the ability to construct large colonial nests from wax and then convert nectar into sweet honey. Both the wax and the honey they produce are exploited by humans for personal use. But bees also play a very important role in the environment by transporting pollen between flowers.

4 Incredible Honey Bee Facts

• A single colony can contain up to 80,000 bees at a time.
• These bees secrete wax between plates on the underside of the abdomen. This wax creates the comb-like structure in which the larvae reside.
• It is believed that these bees can communicate important information to each other (including the location of food) through a complicated dance.
• Since the dawn of the 21st century, these bee colonies have been mysteriously collapsing in some parts of the world, and it’s not clear why.

Evolution and Origins

Honey bees are believed to have evolved from hunting wasps, which developed a taste for nectar and changed their diet to become vegetarian. The process of their evolution began approximately 100 to 120 million years ago, during the Cretaceous Period.

Recent research has shown that honey bees are derived from an ancient lineage of cavity-nesting bees that arrived from Asia around the same time as the evolution of flowering plants. These bees developed physiological and behavioral adaptations to efficiently collect and transfer pollen from flower to flower, making them the primary pollinators of plants today.

Species, Types, and Scientific Names

Honey bees are insects classified in the order Hymenoptera and the family Apidae. They are further classified in the genus Apis (a Latin word that simply means “bee”). Of the roughly 20,000 known bee species, the genus Apis contains only seven to twelve. The western honey bee is by far the most common, especially for the purpose of making domesticated honey.

The species in the genus Apis are:

• Western Honey Bee – Apis mellifera
• Eastern Honey Bee – Apis cerana
• Philippine Honey Bee – Apis nigrocincta
• Koschevnikov’s Honey Bee – Apis koschevnikovi
• Giant Honey Bee – Apis dorsata
• Himalayan Giant Honey Bee – Apis laboriosa (also classified as Apis dorsata laboriosa)
• Black Dwarf Honey Bee – Apis andreniformis
• Dwarf Honey Bee – Apis florea

Why are Honey Bees Important?

Honeybees are important for a variety of reasons. One of the most significant is their role in pollination. They pollinate many of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts that make up a significant portion of our diet, including apples, almonds, and blueberries.

Additionally, honey bees help to pollinate plants that provide habitat and food for other wildlife. They also produce honey and beeswax, which are used in a wide range of food and other products.

They are also used as model organisms in scientific research to study topics such as learning, memory, and social behavior.

In recent years, honey bee populations have been in decline due to factors such as habitat loss, disease, and pesticide exposure, highlighting the urgent need to protect and conserve them.

Appearance: How to Identify the Honey Bee

These bees are small, flying insects with long, segmented bodies divided into the head, the thorax (essentially, the mid-section), and the abdomen, from which a long and sharp stinger emerges. The body is covered in alternating bands of yellow/reddish-brown and dark bands, which serve as a warning to potential predators. It also has two wings, six legs, and small hairs over its body. A typical bee is only about half an inch long, or the size of a paper clip.

The bee colony has a complex social arrangement comprised of three different classes. The male drones only serve one basic purpose: reproduction. During the winter months, they are expelled from the colony to save resources, and most end up dying.

Female bees make up the entirety of the workforce. They forage for food, build and maintain the hive, and protect it from threats. However, they are incapable of sexual reproduction. The queen, of which only one usually exists at a time, has sole reproductive duties and also influences colony behavior primarily through pheromones, while worker bees collectively regulate the activity of the hive. If one queen dies, then the colony can create another one by feeding a female larva royal jelly.

Honey Bee vs. Bumble Bee

The bumble bee has a very similar appearance and social structure to the honey bee. The main differences are the larger body, thicker coat of hair, and a darker set of wings. It also forms smaller colonies and does not produce honey.

Habitat

These bees are actually native to Europe, western Asia, and Africa. Only the western honey bee — due to human domestication — is found in nearly every ecosystem around the world, except in the most extreme climates. With a few exceptions, they construct nests in protected areas such as tree cavities or the underside of buildings.

Diet

These insects get all of their nutrients from pollen and nectar, which are both derived from plants. Pollen provides most of the protein, while nectar provides most of the carbohydrates and water. In order to survive the coldest months, the workers store up food reserves for the winter in their honeycombs. They create honey by processing the nectar inside their bodies and then regurgitating it.

Prevention

The most effective way to get rid of these insects is to use some kind of repellent or bee spray, including insecticides, citronella candles, garlic spray, vinegar, ultrasonic insect repellents, and insect repellent plants. You can also buy or create your own bee trap and lure them inside. Handling a hive yourself is not recommended.