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Honeybees communicate through dancing and pheromones. Worker bees will "dance" to tell other foragers about food sources. This is called a waggle dance. Pheromones are scents bees release to trigger specific actions of other honeybees in the hive. For example, if a bee feels that the hive is threatened, she will send out pheromones that tell guard bees to defend the hive.
Honeybees live in human-made hives, typically crafted out of wood. They build their hexagonal (six-sided) cells on frames in the hive. These cells are made out of beeswax. Beeswax is made from a honeybee's wax glands. The wax glands are located on the underside of their thorax, the third and biggest segment of their body. A honeybee will then take the wax and chew it, to make it malleable, or easy to work with. They then build the comb. Cells in the hive are hexagonal to avoid any unused or open space.
A honeybees eggs are very small, about half the size of a grain of rice. Because of this, they are incredibly light in weight.
Pollination is the process in which pollen from one flower lands on the center of another flower. This sends a signal to the second flower to start producing. This is called fertilization. Pollination is needed to grow fruits, vegetables, and nuts. One out of three bites of food we eat is dependent on pollination. Eighty percent of those pollinators are honeybees.
Honeybees have a long and straw-like tongue called a proboscis. They can use this tongue to suck up nectar, honey, and water. They can also switch to a lapping method, like how a dog drinks water. Honeybees' tongues have thousands of bristles on them. When they dip their tongue in the center of a flower, the nectar gets trapped in the bristles, allowing them to efficiently collect it.
Thank you for your question! Honeybees work together to regulate the temperature in the hive. In the hotter months, honeybees fan their wings to create air flow to cool off their hive. To keep the hive warm in the colder months, honeybees form a tight cluster, vibrate their bodies to form heat and use their body heat to keep the inside of the cluster warm enough to raise brood. The bees rotate themselves from the inside to outside of the cluster. Thank you for your great question!
I noticed you tour around to different classroom to educate students about bees. How do you choose the classrooms you visit or is an application process available?
Yes! The American Honey Queen and Princess visit classrooms to teach about honeybees, honey, beekeeping and pollination. To arrange for the American Honey Queen or Princess to visit your area or set up a virtual presentation, contact American Honey Queen Program Committee Chair Anna Kettlewell at honeyqueen99@hotmail.com. Thank you for your interest!
The honeybees will work together to heat up the beehive or cool it down. To heat up the beehive the honeybees will all gather together and shiver their bodies to keep the queen and worker honeybees warm. To cool the beehive down the honeybees will spread water drops through the hive and fan the drops of water off, and the heat will rise to the top of the beehive with the water. If the beehive is too hot and the water drops aren't enough, the honeybees will go outside the beehive and work together to fan the hot air out of the beehive.
Honeybees don't sting each other on purpose, but when they are defending the beehive they can accidentally sting each other. If a different type of bee or a honeybee from a different hive is trying to get in the hive, they will sting her.
The different types of honeybees all live different amounts of time. Worker bees live 5-6 weeks, while queens can live 3-6 years. Drones live a few months or until they mate.
Because the queen honeybee's stinger is not barbed like the workers' stingers she can sting multiple times, but the queen almost never will sting a person.
One worker honeybee weighs about the same amount as a penny. An empty beehive weighs about 50 pounds, but a beehive full of bees and honey can be up to about 300 pounds.
It is best to talk to your doctor to see what would work best for you, but local honey can be a very unique experience. There are over 300 varieties of honey in the United States, with different flavors and colors. Honey can be used for other than just eating, it can help heal cuts and scrapes.
Thank you for your comment/question! We are busy buzzing across American spreading the sweet news about honey and beekeeping, but we will do our best to respond in the next 24 hours. We appreciate your patience!
How do bees communicate?
ReplyDeleteHoneybees communicate through dancing and pheromones. Worker bees will "dance" to tell other foragers about food sources. This is called a waggle dance. Pheromones are scents bees release to trigger specific actions of other honeybees in the hive. For example, if a bee feels that the hive is threatened, she will send out pheromones that tell guard bees to defend the hive.
DeleteHow are beeshives made?
ReplyDeleteWhat do their eggs weigh?
Honeybees live in human-made hives, typically crafted out of wood. They build their hexagonal (six-sided) cells on frames in the hive. These cells are made out of beeswax. Beeswax is made from a honeybee's wax glands. The wax glands are located on the underside of their thorax, the third and biggest segment of their body. A honeybee will then take the wax and chew it, to make it malleable, or easy to work with. They then build the comb. Cells in the hive are hexagonal to avoid any unused or open space.
DeleteA honeybees eggs are very small, about half the size of a grain of rice. Because of this, they are incredibly light in weight.
How does pollen from another flower help a flower grow food or whatever it grows?
ReplyDeletePollination is the process in which pollen from one flower lands on the center of another flower. This sends a signal to the second flower to start producing. This is called fertilization. Pollination is needed to grow fruits, vegetables, and nuts. One out of three bites of food we eat is dependent on pollination. Eighty percent of those pollinators are honeybees.
DeleteHow do bees tongues work?
ReplyDeleteHoneybees have a long and straw-like tongue called a proboscis. They can use this tongue to suck up nectar, honey, and water. They can also switch to a lapping method, like how a dog drinks water. Honeybees' tongues have thousands of bristles on them. When they dip their tongue in the center of a flower, the nectar gets trapped in the bristles, allowing them to efficiently collect it.
DeleteWhat do bees do when their hive is hot or cold?.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your question! Honeybees work together to regulate the temperature in the hive. In the hotter months, honeybees fan their wings to create air flow to cool off their hive. To keep the hive warm in the colder months, honeybees form a tight cluster, vibrate their bodies to form heat and use their body heat to keep the inside of the cluster warm enough to raise brood. The bees rotate themselves from the inside to outside of the cluster. Thank you for your great question!
DeleteI noticed you tour around to different classroom to educate students about bees. How do you choose the classrooms you visit or is an application process available?
ReplyDeleteYes! The American Honey Queen and Princess visit classrooms to teach about honeybees, honey, beekeeping and pollination. To arrange for the American Honey Queen or Princess to visit your area or set up a virtual presentation, contact American Honey Queen Program Committee Chair Anna Kettlewell at honeyqueen99@hotmail.com. Thank you for your interest!
DeleteHow much do queen bees weigh?
ReplyDeleteQueen honeybees weigh about twice as much as a worker honeybee, or about the weight of two pennies.
DeleteWhat happens when a hive is too hot or too cold?
ReplyDeleteThe honeybees will work together to heat up the beehive or cool it down. To heat up the beehive the honeybees will all gather together and shiver their bodies to keep the queen and worker honeybees warm. To cool the beehive down the honeybees will spread water drops through the hive and fan the drops of water off, and the heat will rise to the top of the beehive with the water. If the beehive is too hot and the water drops aren't enough, the honeybees will go outside the beehive and work together to fan the hot air out of the beehive.
DeleteCan bees get really aggressive and sting other bees?
ReplyDeleteHoneybees don't sting each other on purpose, but when they are defending the beehive they can accidentally sting each other. If a different type of bee or a honeybee from a different hive is trying to get in the hive, they will sting her.
DeleteWhich breed of bees live the longest?
ReplyDeleteThe different types of honeybees all live different amounts of time. Worker bees live 5-6 weeks, while queens can live 3-6 years. Drones live a few months or until they mate.
DeleteHow many times can a Queen bee sting?
ReplyDeleteBecause the queen honeybee's stinger is not barbed like the workers' stingers she can sting multiple times, but the queen almost never will sting a person.
DeleteDo bees sweat?
ReplyDeleteHoneybees do not have sweat glands so they cannot produce sweat. They cool the hive by fanning their wings.
DeleteHow much does a bee weigh and also how much does a hive weigh?
ReplyDeleteOne worker honeybee weighs about the same amount as a penny. An empty beehive weighs about 50 pounds, but a beehive full of bees and honey can be up to about 300 pounds.
DeleteIs it true that local honey helps with allergies?
ReplyDeleteIt is best to talk to your doctor to see what would work best for you, but local honey can be a very unique experience. There are over 300 varieties of honey in the United States, with different flavors and colors. Honey can be used for other than just eating, it can help heal cuts and scrapes.
Delete