Honeybees are essential commercial crop
pollinators. They are worth billions to the global economy.
Hollow tree beehive - photo Brett Pigon |
These insects develop an organized social colony
accommodating a queen (elongated body), worker bees (multi-tasking females), and
drones (males). A beehive with an internal honeycomb provides nesting for some
species; it is sometimes located in a rock crevice or hollow tree. The
honeycomb consists of hexagonal cells constructed from beeswax, from the
stomachs of worker bees. These cells contain the ongoing brood: eggs, larvae,
and pupae. During summer, possibly 80,000 bees complete the
colony.
Other shelters are exposed aerial nests. Also, a
beekeeper might provide an artificial hive—beekeeping is even depicted in
stone-age cave paintings.
From
a larva selected by worker bees, the queen bee matures. This larva is fed
exclusively on royal jelly from worker bees—otherwise, the queen develops as a
worker. A virgin queen may fly more than once to a drone congregation area
to mate for life with multiple drones from other colonies; drones
have huge eyes to perceive her. She stores millions of sperms. During her
lifetime, she may lay 1 million eggs; she controls the sex of offspring.
Obviously busy reproducing, the queen bee is maintained by worker bees. Her
scent (pheromone) regulates hive behavior.
Woodpecker nest beehive - photo Brett Pigon |
Honeybee on Florida native Rusty Lyonia - by Brett Pigon |
How
about stings? Queens may sting especially rival queens without dying. Worker
bees sting and die. Drones have no stingers but die after mating. The
sensationalized Africanized honeybees (killer bees) do not deliver a more
potent sting, but they defend relentlessly in greater numbers.
Wild
or kept, honeybees are in alarming decline: colony collapse disorder. Bees
never return home—possibly disoriented. Plausible causes are pesticides,
breeders causing lack of genetic diversity, radiation from cell phones and
communication towers, and genetically modified crops (less nutritious pollen).
Are honeybees canaries in the coal mine?
Undeniably, honeybees are indispensable. For
example, bone wax, made of beeswax, controls
bleeding during surgery. 90% of our cherries depend
on honeybee pollination. And honey, besides potential health benefits, is
savory—ask any bear.
No comments:
Post a Comment