7 Facts About Honey Bees 

Honey bees may be one of the most recognizable insects and for good reason. From spokesperson bees, such as BuzzBee (Honey Nut Cheerios) to fictional characters such as Maya the Bee and Barry B. Benson (Bee Movie), these important pollinators are present throughout our pop culture and our real-world lives. In fact, bee species like the honey bee not only make cute characters, but they are also a critical part of our planet’s biodiversity, pollinating a variety of agricultural products and gardens around the world. Let’s take a more serious look at the fascinating world of the common but incredible honey bee. 

Honey Bee Facts You Might Not Know  

Honey bees are among the planet’s most important insect species, thanks to the role that they play in the production of food, including producing delicious honey. Yet, there is more to bees than what meets the eye.  

Honey Bees Are Powerful Pollinators  

Most people associate bees with pollination, but did you know that one out of every three bites of food we take comes as a result of pollinators, including honey bees? In fact, according to the World Wildlife Foundation, 90% of all wild plants rely on pollinators for their survival.  

Honey Bees Are Part of Their Own Family 

Honey bees live in a collective, called a hive or colony, where all members of the bee “family” play an important role in the group’s survival. Within the colony, one queen bee lays all the eggs and is the “mother” to all the other bees. In the summer months, when the queen is most active, she can lay more than 2,500 eggs every day. 

Bees Know How to Work 

In addition to the queen, other female bees in the colony assume the role of worker bees. These bees are responsible for food collection (i.e., pollen) and building the hive. During the summer, the average worker bee only lives for about four to six weeks. Most people only come in contact with worker bees since they are the only ones who must routinely leave the hive to perform their duties for the colony. 

Drone Bees Don’t Have Stingers 

The final group that makes up the bee family are the male drone bees. These bees are responsible for mating with the queen and making sure that a new generation is born to sustain the hive. Unlike the female workers, drone bees do not have stingers. 

Bonus Fact: Every bee is important to the health of the hive, and a thriving bee colony can contain anywhere from 40,000 to 60,000 bees. 

High Flying Honey Bees 

Honey bees are very efficient and fly at high speeds. They beat their wings, on average, 200 times a second — that’s more than 11,000 times per minute, which is what creates the recognizable “buzz” sound. With all this movement, honey bees can travel up to 20 miles per hour. 

Bees Like to Boogie 

Have you ever seen a bee wiggle? That’s not an accident. Honey bees have their own dance, called the “waggle dance,” which is not actually a dance at all. Worker bees use a series of distinct movements that were first decoded by researchers at Sussex University to communicate. What are they saying? Mostly, they are telling other workers where to find the best food sources to feed their hive. 

The Queen (Bee) Is Dead, Long Live the Queen 

Since there is only one queen per hive, it creates a big problem if she dies. Luckily, honey bees know how to fix that problem. If the queen dies, the worker bees can actually create a new queen out of one of the larvae (newly hatched babies). By feeding this young bee a special food called “royal jelly,” the workers help it grow up to be a fertile queen and make sure the colony lives on. 

What to Do If You Spot a Honey Bee Nest 

From the perspective of food production and conservation — or even just cool facts — the presence of honey bees anywhere is clearly a positive sign. This is not to say, however, that finding a honey bee colony at an inconvenient place on your property is always welcome. For many homes and businesses, the presence of honey bees can be a nuisance at best and dangerous at worst since honey bee stings can cause anaphylactic shock among those with an allergy. 

However, because of honey bees’ important role on our planet and because honey bees are endangered due to habitat loss and the overuse or improper use of pesticides in commercial farming, it’s important to seek professional help when trying to get rid of a honey bee hive near your home or business.  

At USX Pest, we offer safe and effective honey bee removal services that take both property and bee conservation into consideration. Use our online scheduling system to get your free inspection or contact us today to learn more about our services for all bee species.