Fun Bee Facts:
- Bees communicate through a dance. They'll "dance" in a Figure 8 and even "waggle", this dance gives others in the hive the distance and direction of to patches of flowers yielding nectar and pollen, good water sources or to new housing locations.
- Bees are native to Asia, Africa and Europe. Honeybees were first introduced to the East Coast of North America in 1622.
- A swarm of bees is primarily caused by overcrowding of a hive which will happen during the Spring or Summer
- Flower nectar is only one of two sources used by honeybees. Pollen is the other, providing protein and essential nutrients for the bees
- Honeybees are very important pollinators. As field bees forage for nectar, pollen sticks to the fuzzy hairs that cover their bodies. Some of this pollen will rub off into the next flower they visit, fertilizing the flower resulting in better fruit production. The rest of the pollen, they'll bring back to the hive to have the house bees store it in a special part of the comb.
What I find interesting about bees:
- They are absolutely amazing! Worker bees especially! They have so many different jobs in such a short lifespan living only about 6 weeks, (however those born in the fall will live until the following spring). When they are young, they are called "House bees" and work in the hive doing comb construction, brood rearing, tending the queen and drones, cleaning, temperature regulation and defending the hive. The older workers are called "Field Bees;" they forage outside the hive to gather nectar, pollen, and water.
- Bees all go through several days of training, depending on the job...they work each "job" for a few days before moving on to the next without having to go through any training at all. When they emerge from their cell, they automatically start cleaning out their cells and getting to work. Amazing!
Stop by My Big Backyard at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo to learn more about honey bees.
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