Did you know that there are over 20,000 different kinds of bees? Most species of bee do not construct hives, do not produce honey, and do not sting. Find out more about the incredible variety and beauty of these buzzing creatures.
There are about a million bees in one pound. Four thousand bees add up to only one pound. There are 50,000 bees in each of our hives, giving them a total weight of 12 pounds.
In its lifetime, a single bee may generate enough honey to fill a tablespoon. To produce just one 9.5 ounce jar of honey from Big Island Bees, 683 bees must fly around 32,550 miles, visiting approximately 1,185,000 flowers to collect 5.93 pounds of nectar.
The top speed at which bees can fly is 12 miles per hour. A honeybee will typically visit between fifty and one hundred flowers on a single foraging flight.
Bees are capable of self-regulating the temperature of their hive to maintain a steady 93–95 degrees Fahrenheit. Since bees are cold-blooded, they have to maintain a steady temperature within the hive. When temperatures outside drop, worker bees swarm together to generate body heat, and propolis is used to cover any gaps in the hive’s exterior. When it’s hot outside, the bees gather around the hive’s entry to cool down. The bees fan the water with their wings to speed up its evaporation. They use fans to propel the cool air throughout the hive, thereby creating a central air system.
Over the course of her life, a queen bee will produce 800,000. The queen’s sole purpose in life is to have babies, and she only leaves the hive once, for mating.
Indeed, bees are quite neat creatures. As a species, bees are renowned for their attention to detail. They constantly clean their hive and groom one another.
The honeycomb’s hexagonal cells are the most space-efficient structures we know of.The layout permits a dense packing of cells with no air gaps. Despite its fragile appearance, the wax’s hexagonal cells can support a great deal of weight.
Honey can be stolen by bees from other colonies. When circumstances are tough, or when the beekeeper accidentally leaves an open hive, the bees will “rob” honey from nearby hives. A guard bee from the plundered hive will sting to death an intruder if she captures it after smelling the invader’s foreign scent. If the burglar enters the hive undetected, she will pick up the scent of the bees and become familiar enough with the entrance to sneak back in and out whenever she likes.
Honey and pollen make up a bee’s staple foods. Bees get their energy from honey and pollen. Honey provides bees with energy-rich carbohydrates, and the protein in pollen provides them with the amino acids they need to build and repair their bodies. The Queen, however, consumes more honey than any other member of the royal family combined. The royal family subsists on a particular blend of honey and pollen known as “royal jelly.” Compared to larval jelly (the meal eaten by worker and drone bees), royal jelly has a higher concentration of pollen and honey. Without the extra carbs in royal jelly, the queen would be infertile and indistinguishable from tiny worker bees, making the adage “you are what you eat” particularly apt.
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