Kworld Trend / Bees welcoming beehive home breaking science, Bees that lose their hive face a number of challenges, from finding their way back home to being accepted into a new colony, but what you may not know is that the majority of bees don’t even have colonies!
The bee is doing badly. The reasons for this malaise and the massive disappearance of colonies are varied: lack of food due to the impoverishment of the biotope, pesticides , fungicides , diseases … However, we can work for the preservation of bees, for example, by welcoming a beehive in our garden.
Bees welcoming beehive home breaking science
The daily life of man, more and more detached from nature, modifies the main principles of the latter and leads to the disappearance of animal and vegetable money. The bee, like many others, pays the price for man’s will to control nature .
It would have gone unnoticed. Many species of animals and plants have disappeared from the face of the earth, and polar bears , great apes, etc. face the same fate. The bee could have been part of this blocklist without anyone worrying about her fate. However, the media and politicians talk about it. Why ?
Because bees, a major player in pollination , have economic value. Thanks to him, we can eat honey, polish our furniture, and take care of ourselves: our modern society is rediscovering the virtues of forgotten nascent therapy. And then, above all , the role of pollinator of the bee allows us to taste cherries , peaches , apples , tomatoes , zucchini … that will not reach our plates.
Honey is one of the oldest ways to sweeten foods. Its manufacture requires a lot of work from the bees. Unisciel and the University of Lille 1 explain to us, through the Kézako program, the stages of its making. © Unisciel
This is where the drama plays out: If the bee were to disappear, humans would have to artificially pollinate the flowers of multiple plants, which would be tremendous work and expense. Ultimately, future generations and many species of fruit-eating animals may experience serious feeding difficulties.
Bee Conservation Act
At our smallest level, there isn’t much we can do about the disappearance of polar bears and great apes. On the other hand. We can work for the preservation of bees by welcoming a few hives into our gardens. By letting them find something to eat on our lawns or on our farms.
For those who cannot or do not want to welcome bees into their homes but would like to work for their welfare, here are some tips:
- Plant honey plants. There are many but some more visited than others: phacelia, lavender, sweet clover, heather and calone , ivy , borage , sunflower , columbine , white clover, alfalfa, sage, bearberry , fireweed, dandelion .
- Make sure you have honey plants in your garden in all seasons and don’t mow dandelions, clover, or flowers that brighten up your garden.
- Well-mowed grass has no nutritional value for insects : put the clippings in the blank.
- Most importantly, there are no chemicals; It is bad for your health and for our bee friends.
For the lucky ones who want and can say hello to bees, this file is for you. Good read!
When most people think of bees, they picture the tiny yellow-black insects swarming around their hive. Sucking nectar and pollinating flowers on their daily trips back and forth. However, hives don’t last forever, and the bee’s navigation system is far from perfect. So what happens when a bee loses its way? Is the boisterous honey-maker condemned to a life of solitude and lonely death, or is there hope for a happy ending?
To research this question properly, there are a few other characteristics of bees. And some surprising facts that may be very helpful.
Can bees get lost?
When we think of bees, we often have in mind that bees know where they are home, and are in no danger of getting lost. The bees that leave the colony in search of pollen and nectar are worker bees, which are female and responsible for the majority of the work in the hive. In an average honey bee colony, there may be 20,000-80,000 worker bees, a few hundred males and one queen bee. Male drones have no responsibilities other than mating with an unfertilized queen, who has no offspring, and usually does not leave the hive or colony.
However, for worker bees, which are likely the bee species you’ve encountered buzzing and flying around your garden, survival outside the colony is essential. They only have a lifespan of two months, on average, they spend their first two weeks working inside the hive. So once they leave the hive, they don’t want to waste time getting lost. Bees welcoming beehive home breaking science
Fortunately, bees have a great way to navigate through the world without getting lost. Which is to use the sun as a fixed point and maintain an angle relative to the sun. When foraging, the bee will find a food source, then return to the hive in a straight line. Where it will engage in a short, instrumental dance to tell other bees where to find food.
Can bees survive outside the hive? Bees welcoming beehive home breaking science
Well, first of all, only about 10% of bees live in colonies and hive patterns. Known as “solitary bees”, the vast majority of bees around the world live their lives alone. Or in very small communal spaces with other solitary bees of the same species. There are between 20,000 and 30,000 species of solitary bees around the world. And they play a crucial role in pollination, just as colony bees do. But they don’t get the same level of recognition (probably due to a lack of honey!).
So, on a basic level, bees can certainly survive outside the perimeter of the hive. But for honeybees (colonial bees), living in service of a queen is what they do!
If honey bees lose their hive or are separated by a significant geographic distance. With no chance of returning, there is a good chance they will attempt to enter another hive. At this point, the narrative depends entirely on the bee species involved. The health of the hive, whether foreign bees are bringing nectar and pollen into the hive. And whether they are being heavily infused with pheromones .
There is a phenomenon called “honey bee drift,” which is particularly common. When hives are geographically close to each other, such as in apiaries. Basically, each hive is unique, and each bee from that hive marked with a chemical signature. “Drifters” from other colonies maybe allowed in, if the guard bees of the new colony allow it. Bees welcoming beehive home breaking science
