Honey Bee

insects · teamwork · honey · nature

Amazing Architects. Honey bees build their homes inside cavities with thousands of perfectly shaped hexagonal cells made from wax they produce themselves. These six-sided rooms are the most efficient shape for storing honey and raising baby bees.

Queen's Kingdom. A honey bee colony can contain thousands of bees all working together without arguing. This super-organized society is called eusocial, which means everyone has a special job to do.

Liquid Gold. Honey bees make honey by collecting nectar from flowers and regurgitating it (yes, really!) to break it down into delicious, shelf-stable food. They make way more than they need and store the extras in their wax cells.

Perennial Nests. Unlike many insects, honey bee colonies can last for years and years, staying in the same home and growing bigger each season. This makes their hives extra valuable to the bees and to many animals that love honey.

Honey Thieves. Lots of animals want to steal honey from bee hives, including honey badgers, bears, and even people who harvest it. The bees work hard to protect their precious food supply.