Honeybee (Apis mellifera)

Classification:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Class: Insecta

Order: Hymenoptera

Family: Apidae

Genus: Apis

Species: mellifera

Description:

Honeybees are small insects known for their role in pollination and honey production.

They have a distinctive black and yellow striped abdomen, with a fuzzy body covered in tiny hairs.

Worker bees are about 12 mm long, while the queen bee is slightly larger, reaching around 15 mm,
and the drones are larger still, averaging 15-17 mm.

Habitat:

Found worldwide, primarily in temperate climates, but can adapt to various environments.

Honeybees thrive in areas with access to flowers for nectar and pollen.

Behavior:

Honeybees live in colonies, with a highly organized social structure.

Each colony consists of one queen, thousands of worker bees, and a few hundred drones.

Worker bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers and perform various tasks within the hive, such
as nursing larvae, building honeycomb, and guarding the hive.

Drones' primary role is to mate with a virgin queen from another colony.

Lifecycle:

The queen bee lays eggs in the honeycomb cells.

Eggs hatch into larvae, which are fed by worker bees and eventually develop into pupae.
Worker bees cap the cells of the matured pupae until they emerge as adult bees.

The lifecycle from egg to adult takes about 21 days for worker bees, 24 days for drones, and 16 days
for queens.

Importance:

Vital pollinators: Honeybees pollinate many crops and plants, contributing significantly to agriculture
and ecosystem health.

Honey production: Bees produce honey by collecting nectar from flowers, which they store in
honeycombs and later process into honey.

Commercial use: Honey, beeswax, royal jelly, and propolis (bee glue) are commercially valuable
products obtained from honeybee hives.

Threats:

Pesticides, habitat loss, diseases, parasites (such as Varroa mites), and climate change are major
threats to honeybee populations worldwide, leading to colony collapse disorder and declining bee
numbers.

Interesting Facts:

A honeybee may visit up to 5,000 flowers in a single day.

The 'waggle dance' is a unique way honeybees communicate the location of food sources within the
hive.

Honeybees can flap their wings about 200 times per second, enabling them to fly at speeds of
around 15 miles per hour.