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Bee Trivia

We found some of these facts from our very favorite (though becoming dated) beekeeping book: The Beekeeper's Handbook, by Diana Sammataro and Alphonse Avitabile

  • The honey bee is the state insect for a number of states:
    1983: Utah
    1975: Georgia, Maine, Nebraska 1985: Missouri
    1976: Kansas 1990: Tennessee "official
    agricultural insect"
    1977: Louisiana, Vermont, Wisconsin 1992: Oklahoma
    1978: South Dakota 2002: West Virginia

  • Forage range (massive area):
    • Typical: 2-3.5 mile radius (8000-28,000 acres)
    • Maximum: 5-8 mile radius (50,000-129,000 acres)
  • Average worker bee lifetime flight mileage: 500 miles
  • Number of flowers visited per bee per load of pollen: 50 to 350
  • Number of pollen grains on a pollinating bee: 250,000 to 6,000,000 (flower dependent)
  • Lethal dose of venom: approximately 10 bee stings per pound of body weight
  • Amount of honey produced per hive per year: up to 400 pounds
    Amount of honey in excess that a beekeeper can claim per hive per year: 0 to 200 pounds (averaging 50-80 pounds). The rest is for the bees.
  • Pounds of honey per gallon: 12
  • Honey bee development times (in days) from Wikipedia's Honey Bee Brood article:

    Days in state
    Type Egg Larva Cell
    capped
    Pupa Developmental
    Period Total
    Start of
    Fertility
    Queen 3 (fert.) 5.5 7.5 the last 8 16 total approx. 23rd day
    Worker 3 (fert.) 6 9 the last 12 21 total n/a
    Drone 3 (unfert.) 6.5 10 the last 14.5 24 total approx. 38rd day

  • Worker's first flight: 10-14 days old
  • Queen's mating flight: 7-10 days old
  • Consumption of honey per pound of beeswax produced:
    This seems to be in debate...
    • 17-20 pounds from one source (that I am having trouble finding again)
    • 8.4lbs from The Hive and the Honey Bee (book)
  • Eggs laid per queen per day: up to 2000 at the height of summer
  • Maximum flight speed of a worker bee: 15 mph
  • Wing frequency of a flying honey bee: approx. 250hz (roughly a B ironically)
  • Honey produced per worker in its lifetime: 1/12th of a teaspoon
  • One pound of honey: 2 million flowers; 55,000 miles of flight; 10 million trips; by about 768 honey bees.
  • Two very important imports introduced by the Jamestown colony: honey bees and earthworms
  • The honey seeking Man of Bicorp,
    Arafla Cave at Bicorp
    near Valencia, Bodyin.
    6000BCE to 10,000BCE.
  • Number of eyes on a honey bee: 5 (3 are primitive light-sensors only)
  • Visible color band that bees cannot see: red
    Color that red looks like to a bee: shades of black
  • Colors that particularly stimulate aggressive behavior in a honey bee: brown and black (and therefore, red)
  • Number times a single honey bee can sting you: once and then she dies
  • Number times a single wasp can sting you: numerous (it does not die in the process)
  • Commercial value of the US crops dependent upon honey bees: $14.6 billion (as of 2000). (NOTE: we believe this number only applies to direct food costs, not seed or indirect food costs, like cattle).
  • Mankind has been collecting honey for at least 10,000 years and probably his entire existence, and has been keeping or managing honey bees for at least 6500 years (around the time the Egyptian pyramids first began to be built.
  • Honey contains: sugars, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and antioxidants
  • Shelf life of honey: no expiration. Honey never spoils if stored away from moisture.
  • Our favorite honey varietals: Tulip Poplar and Sourwood
  • Number of beekeepers in the US: appr. 200,000 (roughly 95% to 98% are hobbyists)
  • Honey bee eusocial evolution may have experienced more selective pressure at the colony level than at the individual level: article
  • Methods of communication:
    • pheromones (gladular scents and smells) - the predominant communication methodology in and outside of the hive
    • vibration (wing buzzing)
    • taste (by sharing nectar and pollen)
    • dance - honey bees are one of the few animals that can communicate using a symbolic language. More information: part 1, part 2. The wikipedia article for the waggle dance also has a great video linked to it.


* All links last accessed on December 5th, 2009