This post contains affiliate links . Read full revelation statement here .
Take this spry quiz and see how much you know about bees — our favorite essential pollinators wreak around the earth .
get superfluous smarts?See how much you sleep with about hummingbird .
Bee Intrigued
When I was in high school , someone gave me a science book about bees , simply because the nameMelissacomes from the Greek Son μέλισσα ( mélissa ) , “ dear bee ” . Despite a severe allergic reaction to bee stings and a dislike for the taste of honey , I understand the book . Turns out , it was a quite a page Henry Hubert Turner , and I ’ve been interested in them ever since .
This quiz is intended for fun , in arandom - fact - can - be - coolkind of room . Bees have made headlines in late years for unfortunate reasons . One good side effect of this is an increased interest group not only in their survival ( and ours ) but their incredible abilities as well .
The entire topic of bees ( behavior , anatomy , social club , communicating , nesting , mating , beehive management , habitat , etc . ) is implausibly rich , and , even with all we know today , there is still so much more to be studied and understood . If you portion out this interest , there are many good books uncommitted . I have listed a few favourite in the Resources subdivision below .
A First Look at Bees
NEW!Click play to listen :
The Bee Quiz
You ’re going to have to go old shoal here and keep score manually .
I have done my best to double - check all the information for accuracy and avoid topics where there does not seem to be a consensus yet . Do countenance me sleep together if you think anything is not as clear or accurate as it should be . The end is share my lovemaking of bee .
The reply to each question is number below the image for that section – curl slowly so you do n’t unintentionally reveal it before you choose your answer .
No looking up answers or you ’ll get bite .
A. 200B. 2,000C. 20,000
snow : 20,000
There are 20,000 know species of bee .
Of these , there are approximately 800 native bee coinage in Canada . The United States has 4,000 . Some of these numbers overlap , of course . Australia has approximately 1,500 and Great Britain has 250 . I have n’t been able to find a reliable source that quotes numbers for the rest of the macrocosm .
A. In the ground . B. inner efflorescence . C. On tree diagram branches . D. In love comb .
A : In the soil . Watch your step ! A absolute majority of bees are what we callsolitary beesand nest in little chess opening ( often just an in mystifying ) on the ground in soil , sand , and other scissure .
A. 7B. 700C. 7,000
A : 7
There are just 7 species of honey bee .
Of the 20,000 bee species , here are some of the main family unit :
Honey is produced by some species of both gaga and domesticated bee . There are also other species of bees , not in the love bee family group , that also bring forth honey . Another insect , the honeypot ant , also produce a honey - like essence .
A. The cowboy honey beeB. The western honey beeC. The pollen honey bee
B. The westerly love bee(Apismellifera ) , also know as theEuropean dearest bee , is the most coarse species of honey bee and one of the first domesticated insects . This is the domesticated bee that many beekeepers keep . The cowboy love bee and pollen honey bee are names I made up .
The word ‘ apis ’ is Latin for ‘ bee ’ . ‘ Mellifera ’ mean ‘ dear - mien ’ .
Our other records of humans collecting beloved from raving mad bee date back 15,000 year . some 9,000 years ago , beekeepers in North Africa used pottery vessels to obtain honey . Bees and beekeeping are also depicted in Egyptian artistry dating back 4500 age .
Today , the western honey bee is an important pollinator for USDA around the world .
Overall , the most common bee of any type in North America is the sweat bee ( Halictidae ) , a small lone bee often mistaken as a wasp or fly .
fictive .
Here ’s what we love . Not all bee species sting and onlyfemale beescan sting , not males . Those that can bunko game include variousbumble bees , honey bees , and a small bit ofsolitary bees . As we noted , the majority ( over 90 % ) of bee on dry land are solitary bees , and an overwhelming bulk of lonesome bees do not prick .
What we really desire to know is , will this bee decent here right now attempt to stick me ? And , unless you are near at recognizing the species in your area , you will have to label by behavior not appearance . The most common reason for stinging is perceived threat against the nest . In other words , back off , do n’t threaten resourcefulness , and do n’t swat .
bee may go after stinging because the sting barb gets lodged in human hide and pull off the bee ’s abdomen as it tries to fly away ( ouch ) . manful bee live a similar fate , losing their penises after tangle ( ouch again ) .
A. In the mouthB. On the front legsC. At the low peak of the abdomen
C. At the low confidential information of the abdomen .
The cut on bee is located at the low-spirited bakshis of the abdomen on the underbody . The stinger is a modified egg - lay organ which is why some female bee have stinger that ca n’t in reality sting . male do not have this body part .
A. BlueB. RedC. Green
B. Red
bee can not perceive the red end of the spectrum but , unlike us , they can see ultraviolet light . Because of this , they see the reality as more blue and royal than we do . The two main eyes see movement . The additional 3 humble eye ( on the forehead ) detect the intensity of sparkle .
relate : Do You Know Hummingbirds ? Take the Quiz and Find Out !
A. BeetlesB. DragonfliesC. Ladybirds / ladybugs
B. devil’s darning needle
While they are more likely to catch tent flap , gnat , and mosquito , snake doctor also rust beesand butterflies . One of a dragonfly ’s greatest tricks is to capture quarry in flight of stairs , grab them with their haired legs .
Spiders also eat bee but they are arachnid not insects .
A. 3 monthsB. 3 yearsC. 30 years
C. 30 years or moreWith proper storage , dear lasts indefinitely . While the appearing and eubstance can change from fluent and gilt to livid and hard , that is usually crystallization or granulation tissue . Placing a honey shock in a warm bathtub ( 100 - 120 ° F / 37 - 48 ° 100 ) can generate it to its original form .
A. Because they exercise positive thinkingB. Because they have a trash of wine-coloured with dinner party each nightC. Because they are feed more than the other bees
C. Because they are fed more than the other bees .
The development of queen bee is an intriguing matter . The bees that become queens actually have the same DNA as other bees in the hive . The divergence is good alimentation . The larvae prefer to become queens are given supererogatory ration of nutritious majestic gelatin secrete by the worker bee , and this allows their reproductive organs to full develop . The queer bee becomes importantly expectant than the other bees and can survive years longer .
Something else I receive interesting : when a newfangled queen honey bee emerges from her cell ( the baby nursery ) , she accept flight with the sole intent of mating . In some cases , during this first trip out in the world , the nance will experience sperm from loads of male bee . With the sperm safely stored , the queen returns to the beehive for the rest of her life , unless crowded conditions induce swarming and the relocation to a new beehive . That one meter outside might just be her only flight ! From that day forth she is lay eggs for succeeding generations . Being queen is not it ’s all crack up to be .
Mini Review So You Can Impress Your Friends
Score
So how many correct answer did you get ?
1 - 3 : Honey Bee Award 💛 💛 💛 Totallybeelievable ! Unless you ’re a bee oddball , this information was believably new to you . Her Majesty appreciates your honesty and awards you 3 golden pots of honey .
4 - 6 : Beeginner Geek Award 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 Impressive . You must have a mind for detail , or , you liked your gamy school biota teacher .
7 - 8 : Beereader Award 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 Who ’s been reading about bees?You have . Well done .
9 - 10 : Apiology Award 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 💛 Let ’s bee real . Did you really get this score?You , apiologist , you !
Resources
If you are new to bees , consider which aspect you want to sharpen on such as the science of bees , bee preservation , garden for bees , or beekeeping .
DIY
Books
Magazines & Journals
Bee well .
~Melissathe Empress of Dirt ♛
