Honey Bee
Small bodies, vast purpose: weavers of survival in every bloom.
Bees are winged insects that form a monophyletic clade Anthophila within the superfamily Apoidea of the order Hymenoptera, with over 20,000 known species in seven recognized families. Some species – including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees – are social insects living in colonies, whereas over 90% of bee species – including mason bees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, and sweat bees – are solitary. Unlike the closely related wasps and ants, who are carnivorous/omnivorous, bees are herbivores that specifically feed on nectar (nectarivory) and pollen (palynivory), the former primarily as a carbohydrate source for metabolic energy, and the latter primarily for protein and other nutrients for their larvae. They are found on every continent except Antarctica, and in every habitat on the planet that contains insect-pollinated flowering plants. The most common bees in the Northern Hemisphere are the Halictidae, or sweat bees, but they are small and often mistaken for wasps or flies. Bees range in size from tiny stingless bee species, whose workers are less than 2 millimeters (0.08 in) long, to the leafcutter bee Megachile pluto, the largest species of bee, whose females can attain a length of 39 millimeters (1.54 in). Vertebrate predators of bees include primates and birds such as bee-eaters; insect predators include beewolves and dragonflies. Bees are best known for their ecological roles as pollinators and, in the case of the best-known species, the western honey bee, for producing honey, a regurgitated and dehydrated viscous mixture of partially digested monosaccharides kept as food storage of the bee colony.
- Scientific Name
- Apis mellifera
- Diet
- Nectar and Pollen
- Primary Habitat
- Native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; introduced globally
Lore & Background
The source does not describe honey bee colony structure in detail, but it notes that honey bees are social insects living in colonies, and that the western honey bee produces honey as food storage. The source also states that human beekeeping or apiculture has been practiced for millennia, since at least the times of Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece. Bees have appeared in mythology and folklore, through all phases of art and literature from ancient times to the present day, although primarily focused in the Northern Hemisphere where beekeeping is far more common. In Mesoamerica, the Maya have practiced large-scale intensive meliponiculture since pre-Columbian times. The source does not mention a queen, workers, drones, the waggle dance, or specific colony behaviors.
In Their Own Story
The source does not provide any narrative or specific story about honey bees. It only gives general biological and ecological facts.
Reader's Guide
Honey bees are social insects living in colonies. They produce honey, a regurgitated and dehydrated viscous mixture of partially digested monosaccharides kept as food storage of the bee colony. Pollination management via bees is important both ecologically and agriculturally, and the decline in wild bee populations has increased the demand and value of domesticated pollination by commercially managed hives of honey bees. Human beekeeping or apiculture has been practiced as a discipline of animal husbandry for millennia, since at least the times of Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece. The source does not describe nesting sites, caste systems, communication, or specific behavioral details beyond these points.
Did You Know?
- Bees are found on every continent except Antarctica.
- The largest species of bee is Megachile pluto, whose females can attain a length of 39 millimeters (1.54 in).
- The smallest bee species are dwarf stingless bees in the tribe Meliponini whose workers are less than 2 millimeters (0.08 in) in length.
- Vertebrate predators of bees include primates and birds such as bee-eaters; insect predators include beewolves and dragonflies.
- Human beekeeping has been practiced since at least the times of Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.
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