We have entered on the tiptoes in the intimacy of the bees: from their mating (poor drone!), to their laying eggs. And then?? From that tiny egg to the well done bee?? And once born, what happens? What do bees do exactly? We speak always about ‘hardworking bees’…but what do they do the whole day? Before proceeding with reading the article, stop for a moment and try to give me a reply! Think about it carefully… What the hell do bees do during their whole life??
From laying the egg to…?
The beequeen lays the egg, if fertilised a baby girl and if not a baby boy…and then? After how long the bee is born and ready to leave that cell? It depends! First of all, there are different stages: firstly we have a larva, that soon will become a pupa and then a 100% bee! How long this process may last depends on the kind of bee: for a beequeen this metamorphosis lasts 16 days, for the worker bee 21 days and for the drone 24 days.
And then?? what do bees do over their life?
Let’s focus in particular on the tasks of worker bees, that additionally they are the most part in a beehive and their tasks are pretty various. So, have you pondered about it? How do they make their days full? What is sure is that they know and can do many things, but the most enchanting part is that they don’t do this all at random. According to their age and experience, they take care of something in particular and the continuous laying eggs by the beequeen causes an ongoing exchange. Shortly, there is always someone that does what has to be done and in complete harmony, with a truly team spirit.
So what do bees do the whole day?
The last year, before the end of the high beekeeping season, I managed to stop a more than adult bee while she was coming back from her nectar collection time. As you well know, I am very curious and I wanted to ask her to tell me a bit about her life. “It must be sooo interesting and full of things to do, but I was wondering, what exactly? Maybe with your high experience and deep wisdom, you could tell me more…“. After a short flattering session, I managed to convince her successfully. She stopped for some minutes to tell me a bit about her life and me, of course, taking notes – you can find them here below:
The typical life of a worker bee
Well, I must admit that actually I have seen and done many things…afterall, 55 springs! I started to work my way up the ladder from the very first 2 hardworking days of my life: cleaning up all these cells – I mean, have you seen how many?? And not only: trying to keep warm the future little sisters! Then of course, feeding them too, preparing royal gelly, pollen and honey the whole day. This not only for the little sisters, sure, but for our mom as well…ah, our mamma! I used to cuddle her, feed her…we would do anything for her! Then when I turned into 10 days, I moved to another area of the beehive, for taking care of the provisions of honey and pollen. My elderly sisters used to bring us sooo much and me, with those in my age, I used to put them away to keep them at the best way possible. Days were flying by between cleaning the beehive and building new cells with the wax. Many satisfactions…such a masterpiece! But I will never forget when I turned into 17 days, with my very first visit outside! My first exploration outside. We used to go out, nice warm sun, colourful flowers and what a smeeell…wonderful times! Then once back, we used to tell to our sisters where to go to find good nectar! After two days of honorable service in protecting the hive, it was time for me – 22 days old, pretty much – for exploring and giving my contribution in collecting provisions of water, nectar, propolis, pollen and in this way I keep on making my days full! I can tell that I have lived a fantastic and rich life! Sorry, now I really have to run away, I’ve to dance a bit to show my little sisters where to collect provisions, they’re waiting for me! It was a pleasure btw, see you soon!’
And before I could take off my eyes from my notebook, she had already flown away!
Knowing what bees do, it’s important not only for the beekeeper, that needs of course to be aware of it so as to proceed with his/her beekeeping activities while respecting bees. It’s important for you too! We hope that this article makes you ponder about how much there is outside and inside a beehive and how enchanting is the balance of the nature, that deserves our respect indeed!
Any words to leave to our little friend bee that was so kind to tell us about her life? Do not hesitate to leave here below a comment 🙂 we’ll report to her!
A hug,
the Gaeblini