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I’m willing to bet that you know that bees pollinate our crops and that some give us
honey.
But, there are a lot of fascinating facts about bees that you may or may not have known.
Stick around and let’s see what we can learn about the busy bee.
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10.
According to Wikipedia, there are nearly 20,000 species of bees that buzz around every continent
but Antartica.
Related to ants and wasps, the bee species all belong to 7 recognized biological families.
Bees range in size from tiny stingless bee species whose workers are less than 2 millimeters
(0.08 in) long to Megachile pluto, the largest species of leafcutter bee, whose females can
attain a length of 39 millimeters (1.54 in).
The species best known to us is the European Honey Bee, the bees that make most of our
honey and beeswax, while also pollinating our crops.
9.
Human beekeeping or apiculture has been practiced for millennia, since at least the times of
Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.
Apart from honey and pollination, honey bees produce beeswax, royal jelly and propolis
(or bee glue).
Bees have appeared in mythology and folklore, through all phases of art and literature,
from ancient times to the present day, though this mostly has taken place in the Northern
Hemisphere, where beekeeping is far more common.
Some of the oldest examples of bees in art are rock paintings in modern-day Spain which
have been dated to 15,000 BC.
8.
A bee has a pair of large compound eyes which cover much of the surface of the head.
Between and above these are three small simple eyes (ocelli) which provide information for
the bee on light intensity.
Studies suggest Honeybees recognize faces the same way we do.
They take parts—like eyebrows, lips, and ears—and put them together to make a mental
map of the whole face.
It’s called “configular processing,” and computer scientists are trying to model
it to improve facial recognition technology.
7.
Facial recognition isn’t the only complex behavior bees accomplish.
They also happen to be nature’s most economical builders.
In 36 BC, Marcus Terentius Varro argued that honeycombs were the most practical structures
that could be built, providing the most structural strength for the least amount of material.
Centuries later, Greek mathematician Pappus solidified the “honeycomb conjecture”
by making the same claim.
Almost 2000 years later than that, Thomas Hales wrote a 19-page mathematical proof showing
that, of all the possible structures, honeycombs use the least amount of wax.
And not only are honeycombs the most efficient structures in nature—the walls meet at a
precise 120-degree angle, forming a perfect hexagon.
6.
Bees are not just a collection of boing drones that all act.
Bees have different "personalities", with some showing a stronger willingness or desire
to seek adventure than others, according to a 2012 study by entomologists at the University
of Illinois.
This supports a 2011 study at Newcastle University that suggested that honeybees exhibit pessimism,
suggesting that insects might have feelings.
Have you ever met a grumpy honey bee or one that seemed to be seeking a thrill?
Let us know in the comments.
5.
Bees are valuable to us in the field of medicine.
Research shows that propolis also called bee glue taken from beehives may relieve cold
sores, canker sores, herpes, sore throat, cavities, and even eczema.
It’s been shown to fight off bacteria, fungi, and viruses.
Speaking of viruses, A toxin in bee venom called melittin may prevent Human Immunodeficiency
Virus or HIV.
The toxin can poke holes in the protective viral envelope that surrounds the HIV virus,
as well as some other viruses.
An added bonus is that it may also have the capacity to kill cancer cells.
4.
They may also help us fight dementia as we age.
When aging bees do jobs usually reserved for younger members, their brain stops aging.
In fact, their brain ages in reverse.
While current research on human age-related dementia focuses on potential new drug treatments,
researchers say these findings suggest that social interventions may be used to slow or
treat age-related dementia.
Imagine if riding a tricycle didn’t just make you feel young, but it actually made
your brain function like a younger person’s.
Scientists at Arizona State University presented findings that show that tricking older, foraging
bees into doing social tasks inside the nest causes changes in the molecular structure
of their brains and remain mentally competent.
While social intervention based on these findings can be done now to help aging humans stay
mentally aware, researchers hope to find which proteins are responsible for the reversed
aging for use in future therapeutic drugs.
3.
Bees are hardwired to do certain jobs.
Scout bees, which search for new sources of food, are wired for adventure.
Soldier bees, discovered in 2012, work as security guards their whole life.
One percent of all middle-aged bees become undertakers—a genetic brain pattern compels
them to remove dead bees from the hive.
But most amazingly, regular honeybees—which perform multiple jobs in their lifetime—will
change their brain chemistry before taking up a new gig.
I guess you can say that they literally change their mind about their life path.
2.
Since 2006, commercial beekeepers in the United States have seen honey bee colony loss rates
increase to an average of 30% each winter, compared to historical loss rates of 10 to
15%.
The recent increased loss of honey bee colonies is thought to be caused by a combination of
stressors, including loss of natural forage and inadequate diets, mite infestations and
diseases, loss of genetic diversity, pollution and exposure to pesticides.
Contributing to these high loss rates is a phenomenon called colony collapse disorder,
in which there is a rapid, unexpected, and catastrophic loss of bees in a hive.
1.
We’ve got a good reason to want to protect bees.
They feed us.
In the United States alone, honeybees account for more than 20 billion dollars worth of
food through their vital role in keeping fruits, nuts, and vegetables in our diets.
Native wild pollinators, such as bumblebees and alfalfa leafcutter bees, also contribute
substantially to the domestic economy.
In 2009, the crop benefits from native insect pollination in the United States were valued
at more than 9 billion dollars.
Insect pollination is integral to food production in the US.
Honey bees enable the production of at least 90 commercially grown crops in North America.
Globally, 87 of the leading 115 food crops are dependent on animal pollinators, contributing
35% of global food production.
Some of our bee populations are on the decline.
And, we, for our own best interests, need to find out why and how to help our fuzzy
pollinating friends recover.
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