Did you know... even a bee knows that the Earth is round

Bees are insects that live in communities where there is a strictly organized division of labor. In each hive there are different queens, workers and drones. The queen is the only female that lays eggs. When creating a community, the queen initially takes care of the brood, but after the brood has developed, she leaves all the care to them.

The workers are the ones who do all the work, take care of the new brood that the queen creates, take care of the queen, find and bring food, etc. Drones are males and they only serve to impregnate the queen (after that they die) who mates only once in her life.

New communities are created by spawning. This happens so that the old queen leaves the community and takes a third of the workers (swarm) with her. At the same time, a new queen is developing in the queen.

Swarming can take place up to three times a year, at the time when there is the highest intake of food in the hives, in mid-spring and mid-summer. Beekeepers often prevent swarming by providing enough space for the entire colony and by regularly removing honey from the hives.

Did you know that:

• the average worker bee produces only 1/12 teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
• workers can visit up to 2.000 flowers in one day
• bees are deaf, and they do not use buzzing to communicate. They have perfected their dance and vibrations to send different messages to the community
• honey never spoils.
• the bee swings about 11.400 times per minute, which is why we hear the buzzing sound
• honey bees have 170 smell receptors that enable them to recognize relatives, social communication within the hive and find food.
• only worker bees can sting, and only if they feel they are in danger. Queens have a stinger, but since they never leave the hive, they are not a danger.
• a bee colony (hive) consists of 20.000 to 80.000 bees and one queen.
• honey bees know that the planet is round, and can count angles to orient themselves
• a strong and healthy bee colony can pollinate up to 3.000.000 flowers in one day
• early afternoon is usually "peak time" in the hive. This is the busiest time of day for the bees as they rush into the crowd trying to get as much done as possible before the sun goes down.
• cleanliness is very important for bees. That's why they will perform one job in life as "undertakers". They take out all the dead bees that died in the hive, to keep them healthy and clean.