Habits and Growth Process of Bees

Habits and Growth Process of Bees
Bees are typical resource insects, well-known for their ability to collect nectar and make honey. In biological taxonomy, they belong to the family Apidae and the genus Apis, comprising nine species of social insects. The most common types are the Chinese bee, the Italian bee, and the black bee (including the Northeast black bee and Xinjiang black bee). Let’s take a look at the habits and growth process of bees.

1. Colony Structure
Bees are classic social insects. A colony consists of one queen, a few drones, and many worker bees. No individual can survive alone after leaving the colony. The queen is responsible for laying eggs and secreting queen pheromones to maintain colony order. Drones mate with new queens and die after mating, while worker bees handle almost all the tasks inside and outside the colony, such as collecting nectar, building the hive, nurturing larvae, and defending against enemies.

2. Division of Labor
Queen: The queen’s primary role is to lay eggs and secrete "queen pheromones" to maintain colony order. A healthy queen can lay over 2,000 eggs per day, and an excellent Chinese bee queen can lay more than 100,000 eggs annually.

Worker Bees: Worker bees perform various tasks such as building the hive, nurturing larvae, collecting food, defending the hive, and cleaning the cells. Based on their age, worker bees can be divided into nurse bees, builder bees, and forager bees.

Drones: The main role of drones is to mate with the queen. Without mating with drones, a new queen cannot lay eggs properly. The quality and quantity of drones significantly impact the queen’s performance. Drones die after mating because their reproductive organs are torn off.

3. Development Process
Queen: The queen develops from a fertilized egg into a female bee in a specially constructed “queen cell” made of beeswax. The egg stage lasts about 3 days, the larval stage about 5 days, and the pupal stage about 8 days. It takes approximately 16 days for a fertilized egg to develop into an adult queen.

Worker Bees: Worker bees also develop from fertilized eggs into female bees in worker cells. The egg stage lasts about 3 days, the larval stage about 6 days, and the pupal stage about 11 days. It takes approximately 20 days for a fertilized egg to develop into an adult worker bee.

Drones: Drones develop from unfertilized eggs into male bees in drone cells. The egg stage lasts about 3 days, the larval stage about 7 days, and the pupal stage about 13 days. It takes approximately 23 days for an unfertilized egg to develop into an adult drone.

4. Living Habits
Gregariousness: Bees are gregarious insects, and no individual can survive independently. For example, the queen would starve to death without worker bees. A single bee is akin to a cell; bees evolve as a collective unit.

Sociality: Bees are highly social insects with colonies comprising worker bees, drones, and a queen. Worker bees perform nearly all tasks, drones mate with new queens, and the queen lays eggs and secretes queen pheromones to maintain colony order.

Nesting: Bees are nesting insects, and their activities such as nurturing larvae and storing food revolve around the hive. The hive consists of several parallel and vertically-oriented combs, which are made up of tightly packed cells.

Food Storage: Bees are food-storing insects. During seasons with abundant nectar sources, bees collect large quantities of pollen and nectar to store in the hive. When nectar sources are scarce or adverse weather conditions prevent foraging, the colony relies on these stored foods.

Exclusivity: Bees are exclusive insects. They identify hive members through a unique hive odor, which consists of a combination of pheromones and scents. Bees from the same hive can coexist peacefully, but they will fight if the hive odors differ.