Busy As a Bee: a Look Inside a Honey Bee Hive by Keri Collins Lewis Her Life Inside the Hive Laying Eggs
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MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE & COMMERCE • ANDY GIPSON, COMMISSIONER VOLUME 93 NUMBER 7 APRIL 1, 2021 JACKSON, MS Busy as a Bee: A Look Inside a Honey Bee Hive By Keri Collins Lewis her life inside the hive laying eggs. resumes laying in January. MSU Extension Service The one exception is if the colony On days when the temperature swarms, the queen will travel with drops below about 57 degrees, honey From the outside, a honey bee the swarm to start a new home.” bees do not fly. They stay inside the hive looks pretty simple: bees fly in During her peak, a queen bee can hive and cluster around the queen and out. They fly around flowers, lay up to 2,000 eggs per day. Laying to keep her warm. But they are not and once inside the hive, they make eggs every day allows the colony’s hibernating. They are still busy, said honey. They must be hard workers -- population to remain relatively con- Extension entomologist Blake Layton. after all, the phrase “busy as a bee” stant through the summer. Depend- “In winter, just staying warm is had to come from somewhere. ing on how long she lives, a queen the most important task for these Like many natural phenomena, a could lay up to a million eggs during cold-blooded animals. They do this hive of honey bees is incredibly com- her lifetime. by clustering together and rapidly plex. Some scientists even classify a “That seems like a lot, but the flexing their muscles to generate beehive, also called a colony, as a su- average colony has between 50,000 heat.” Layton said. “As bees on the perorganism, an insect society made and 80,000 worker bees,” he said. outer layers get cold, they move into up of individuals that create a func- “Balancing the colony’s food and the cluster and other bees move out- tioning whole. water needs, along with the constant ward, so there is constant motion in Jeff Harris, a bee specialist with attention to the queen and the brood the hive.” the Mississippi State University nest, requires a lot of workers.” A queen bee scurries toward the bottom left corner of a frame of capped All this activity requires a lot of Extension Service, explained the cells containing bee larvae. Worker bees have many different jobs within When winter comes, the colony energy, which comes from honey. a colony, including caring for baby bees. Worker bees forage on flowers shifts from foraging for food to sur- “The bees store honey and pollen through the spring, summer and fall to gather and store the honey and vival. for their own use, not to provide a pollen the colony needs to survive the winter months. (File photo by MSU The queen stops laying eggs and delicious snack for humans,” Layton Extension/Keri Collins Lewis) the size of the colony shrinks. Short- lived summer workers die off, and said. “Successful beekeepers leave intricacies of life as a worker honey outside the nest collecting food.” winter bees take their place. These enough stores for their colonies to bee. In terms of division of labor and winter bees live longer than their survive the winter, when the bees “I don’t think most people appre- based on gender, male bees -- called summer counterparts and are typi- rely on what they have stored in the ciate that worker bees change their drones -- are living the lush life. cally born in the fall when golden- comb.” jobs as they age, which is fascinat- They do no work. They do not have rod, aster and other pollen-rich Then spring rolls around, and the ing in its own right given that the stingers for defense and do not col- plants are in bloom. They have more cycle begins again. typical worker bee lives a mere 5-7 lect pollen. That’s right. All of the fat in their bodies to survive the win- For more information on bees and weeks during the summer season,” worker bees are female. ter, and then are able to transition beekeeping, visit http://www.exten- Harris said. “Their jobs are fairly dis- Drones exist for one purpose: to to being nurse bees when the queen sion.msstate.edu. tinct, as well.” reproduce. When they are not con- gregating midair and waiting for a Within the colony, worker bees virgin queen to fly by, drones basi- have plenty to keep them occupied. cally live off the effort of the work- Jobs include cleaning the nest, ers in the colony. In areas with more building comb, nursing bee larvae, severe winter temperatures, workers heating and cooling the nest, caring force the drones out of the hive at for the queen, guarding against in- the end of the warm season to pre- truders, handling and storing food, serve the colony’s food stores. and foraging for food and water. As for the queen, she may have “Changes in key hormones in the the advantage of being fed, tended bodies of workers control the tasks to and fiercely protected by workers, and duties they perform,” Harris but she has her own job to do: lay- said. “When they are young, between ing eggs. zero and three weeks old, these tasks “The colony’s survival depends on focus on duties deep inside the nest. the queen,” Harris said. “A queen can When they are three to six weeks old, live for several years, and after her workers spend most of their time mating flight, she spends the rest of Page 2 MISSISSIPPI MARKET BULLETIN April 1, 2021 Commissioner’s Policy Corner Commissioner Andy Gipson Announces New Mississippi Agriculture Youth Council By Hannah East Council. developing the potential work- Marketing Specialist -MDAC The goal of this Council, com- force for Mississippi. Any public, private or homeschool students Commissioner Andy Gipson prised of youth leaders from can apply to become a member announced on March 4, 2021, around the state, is to provide the Mississippi Department students interested in the ag- of the Agriculture Youth Coun- Andy Gipson of Agriculture and Commerce riculture industry an experi- cil, and final applicants will be chosen by representatives at (MDAC) is launching the new ence that cultivates leadership Commissioner MDAC. Mississippi Agriculture Youth and career development while “I am so excited to launch Andy Gipson Mississippi Department of the first-ever Mississippi Agri- Commissioner Agriculture & Commerce culture Youth Council,” said the upcoming school year. 121 North Jefferson Street Commissioner Gipson. “As the Jackson, MS 39201 future of agriculture in our • Any public, private or home- school students may apply. Phone: 601-359-1100 state, we are proud to give these • Students must exhibit an www.mdac.ms.gov students the opportunity to de- velop leadership, advocacy and interest, passion and/or experi- Ag Museum employability skills through ences in agriculture. 601-432-4500 professional development, in- Agricultural Theft Bureau dustry exposure and experi- Applications can be found on- 1-800-678-2660 ential learning in a variety of line at agnetuat.mdac.ms.gov/ agriculture careers. So, I want youthcouncil/. All applications Aquaculture to invite any youth leaders and 601-359-1102 are due by Thursday, April 1, students interested in the ag- 2021. Semifinalists will be no- Board of Animal Health riculture industry to apply for tified by April 15, 2021. Final 601-359-1170 this incredible opportunity to interviews will be held virtually, serve during your senior year of and 12-15 youth leaders will be Bureau of Plant Industry high school. We will choose 12- 662-325-3390 announced by Friday, May 14, 15 students as members to serve 2021. Consumer Protection on the Council for one year.” 601-359-1148 For more information about Eligibility Requirements: the Mississippi Agriculture Fairgrounds/Coliseum • Must be a 12th grade stu- Youth Council, visit www.mdac. 601-961-4000 dent during the 2021-2022 ms.gov or contact Gayle Forten- Genuine MS school year. Current 11th grad- berry at [email protected] or 601-359-1159 ers in the 2020- 2021 school Emily Stovall at emilys@mdac. year may apply to serve during ms.gov. International Trade 601-359-1196 Keep Mississippi Beautiful 601-359-1100 Livestock Market News 601-359-1159 Market Development 601-359-1159 Meat Inspection 601-359-1191 Mississippi Market Bulletin 601-359-1155 Mississippi Farmers Market 601-354-6573 Regulatory Services 601-359-1111 Petroleum Division Sign up today to become a Genuine MS member 601-359-1101 and support everything that is Produce Safety 601-359-1104 Grown, Raised, Crafted or Made in Mississippi Weights & Measures 601-359-1149 Visit GenuineMS.com • 601-359-1159 • [email protected] April 1, 2021 MISSISSIPPI MARKET BULLETIN Page 3 From Our Kitchen To Yours Springtime Honey Sweets ************************************************************** Honey-Glazed Popcorn 1 1/2 cups quick cooking rolled oats Generously brush honey mixture over entire surface. 1 cup whole wheat flour Bake about 30-45 minutes longer or to 140°; baste 1/4 teaspoon salt every 10 minutes. Let stand 10-15 minutes before 3/4 cup butter or margarine 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon slicing. 2/3 cup honey 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 2/3 cup packed brown sugar Pear Honey Pie 1 cup raisins, chocolate or butterscotch chips 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 4 cups pear, fresh, peeled, sliced In a medium bowl, beat butter with sugar until thor- 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1/3 cup honey oughly blended. Blend in honey. Blend in egg and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 2 tablespoons cornstarch vanilla, mixing until smooth.