Bees

Honey bees are one of the most well-known, popular and economically beneficial insects. For thousands of years, man has plundered honey bee colonies to get honey, bee larvae, and beeswax. In recent decades, bee plundering has given way to bee management. Now, honey bees are commonly kept in artificial hives throughout the United States. A large and sophisticated beekeeping industry provides valuable honey, beeswax and pollination services. Although many people make a living from bees, most beekeepers are hobbyists who have only a few hives.

Bumble BeeTo begin with lets take a look at a bumble bee and her distant cousin the honey bee, with whom she is most often confused. Unlike the honey bee the humble bumble is gentle and slow. As she trundles around the garden collecting pollen and nectar she is quite different to her streamlined relative who dashes about everywhere. Even her body shape is different as you can see from the pictures. The bumble is round and furry and not at all like her more wasp shaped cousin. There are three kinds of bumble bee, the large queen, the smaller imperfectly formed female worker bee, and the tiny male or drone bee. All are seen at different times of year. Only the queen and the worker bees have a sting. Because they live in small nests bumble bees never swarm - so you can encourage a nest or two in the garden without fear of this happening.

Bumble Bee PolinatingBumble bees do not produce enough honey for commercial use, just a few grams at a time to feed their young. Not all bumble bees have a sting. Drones (smaller male bees that hatch in mid summer ) have no sting at all. A bumble bees biggest enemy by far is a man armed with a pesticide spray. Like every other form of wildlife they are under serious threat from the chemicals we pour on the land. Bumble bees are much less aggressive than honey bees. Generally they will not attack a human at all, unless their life is under threat. Don't wave your arms wildly in their presence, stand quietly and once they smell you are not a flower with pollen they will move gently away. Bumble bees do not lose their sting and die if they use it, as a honey bee will. Encourage the bumble bee in your garden or farm and she will repay your kindness by pollinating your flowers, fruit and vegetables and giving you an excellent set on your blossom.

Honey bees from Africa were brought to Brazil in the 1950s. It was thought that genetic material from African bees, already adapted to tropical conditions, could be used to make the European bees already there better honey producers. Unfortunately, some of the introduced bees were released; they were so successful that a large wild population quickly developed. Over the next three decades, this wild population has spread throughout South and Central America. It has several traits which are of importance to the beekeeper and general public.

African Honey BeeThe African honey bee defends its nest (stings) far more than does the European honey bee. It is thought to be more defensive because it has many biological competitors, including humans, in its native Africa, where it is thought only the most defensive honey bees can survive. Apicultural activity in much of Africa is confined largely to bee hunting rather than beekeeping. This has led to limited selection resulting in a population of bees unpredictable in behavior.

Honey BeeBy contrast, the European honey bee population in the U.S. has been selected by beekeepers for manageable traits (gentleness, reduced swarming, high honey hoarding). The consequence of this is that the European bee is much more predictable in behavior and defends its nest to a lesser degree than the African honey bee.

*Click images for a larger version.

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