BUSY BUZZY

BEESBy Kim Scott

A sample bee hive. There are approximately 3000 bees in here!

Western Honeybee (Apis mellifera)

Honeybee Anatomy

Head:1.Sensory Reception2.Nectar, Pollen and Water Ingestion3.Wax Chewing

Thorax:1.Movement2.Respiration3.Pollen Collection

Abdomen:1.Reproduction2.Digestion3.Respiration4.Honey Production5.Pheromone Production6.Wax Production7.Sting and Venom

There are different races of honeybees,

just as there are different races of

people.

Italian Honeybee RaceApis mellifera ligustica

Carniolan Honeybee RaceApis mellifera carnica

European or German Black Honeybee RaceApis mellifera mellifera

Russian Honeybee HybridApis mellifera spp.

Africanized Honeybee RaceApis mellifera scutellata

Regions where Africanized Honeybees can be found in the United States.

There are 3 castes of Honeybees.

A caste represents the different kinds of bees and the jobs they do in

the hive.

Worker

Drone

“Her Highness”

Honeybee Castes

Pollen Collectors!

Nectar Drinkers!

• Bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers • Both are stored in the hive.• The nectar is used to make honey.• The honey and the pollen are used to feed the

bees in the winter.• Why would the bees need to store food for the

winter?.To learn more about bees click on the following

site:http://www.gpnc.org/honeybee.htm#COMB

Pollen Basket

Fanning - Thermoregulation

Honeycomb

1.Strength2.Volume

M.P. = > 97 Degrees F

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Honeycomb-Process.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Bienenwabe_mit_Eiern_und_Brut_5.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Drohnenpuppen_79d.jpg

Queen Cells – Egg Fertilized + Royal Jelly

Development Time Of Honey Bee Castes

Days After Laying EggStage Worker Queen Drone

Hatching 3 3 3Cell Capped 8 8 10

Becomes A Pupa 11 10 14

Becomes An Adult 20 15 22.5

Emerges From Cell 21 16 24

Honeybee Communication

Waggle DanceRound Dance

Honeybee Facts• It is the only insect that produces food eaten by man.

Honey is the only food that includes all the substances necessary to sustain life, including enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and water.

• The honey bee's wings stroke 11,400 times per minute, thus making their distinctive buzz.

• A honey bee can fly for up to six miles, and as fast as 22 miles per hour; it has to fly 90,000 miles - three times around the globe - to make one pound of honey (16 ounces).

Drones are male. They only live a few weeks.

Do not work and are fed by worker bees. Their only function is to breed with queens.

They cannot sting. The colony “kills” all drones before winter.

The queen lives for about 2-3 years and is the only bee that lays haploid (male) or diploid (female) eggs. She

lays up to 2500 eggs per day; 200,000 per growing season.

She can sting

*THE AVERAGE HONEY BEE WILL ACTUALLY MAKE ONLY ONE TWELFTH OF A TEASPOON OF HONEY IN ITS LIFETIME.

*IT TAKES ABOUT 556 WORKERS TO GATHER 1 POUND OF HONEY FROM ABOUT 2 MILLION FLOWERS.

*IT TAKES ONE OUNCE OF HONEY TO FUEL A BEE’S FLIGHT AROUND THE WORLD.

*A honey bee visits 50 to 100 flowers during a collection trip.

*A colony of bees consists of 20,000-60,000 honeybees and one queen at any one time, and can produce in

excess of 200 lbs. of honey per year.

*Worker honey bees are female, live 6 to 8 weeks and do all the work. They can sting.

1100 stings are fatal in most mammals.