Why Do Bees Buzz?

by Evans, Elizabeth Capaldi

• ISBN13: 9780813547213
• ISBN10: 0813547210
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-02-09
• Publisher: Rutgers Univ Pr

Summary

Twenty-five thousand species of bees certainly create a loud buzz. Yet silence descended a few years ago when domesticated bee populations plummeted. Bees, in particular honey bees, are critical links in the vibrant chain that brings fruits, vegetables, and nuts to markets and dinner tables across the country. Farmers and scientists on the agricultural frontlines quickly realized the impact of this loss, but many others did not see this devastation. Why Do Bees Buzz?reports on the mysterious "colony collapse disorder" that has affected honey bee populations, as well as other captivating topics, such as their complex, highly social lives, and how other species of bees are unique and different from honey bees. Organized in chapters that cover everything from these provocative pollinators' basic biology to the aggressive nature of killer bees, this insightful question and answer guide provides a honeycomb of compelling facts. With clarity and depth, bee biologist Elizabeth Capaldi Evans and coauthor Carol A. Butler examine the lives of honey bees, as well as other species such as orchid bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees. Accessible to readers on every level, and including the latest research and theory for the more sophisticated reader, the authors reveal more than one hundred critical answers to questions about the lives of bees. Concepts about speciation, evolutionary adaptation and pollination, as well as historical details about topics such as Mayan beekeeping and the appearance of bees in rock art, are arranged in easy-to-follow sidebars that highlight the text. Color and black and white photographs and drawings enhance the beauty and usefulness ofWhy Do Bees Buzz?

Author Biography

Elizabeth Capaldi Evans is an associate professor of biology and animal behavior at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Her studies have been published in a wide variety of scientific journals, including Nature, the Annual Review of Psychology, and the Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society. Carol A. Butler is the coauthor of Salt Marshes: A Natural and Unnatural History, Do Butterflies Bite? Fascinating Answers to Questions about Butterflies and Moths, Do Bats Drink Blood? Fascinating Answers to Questions about Bats, and Do Hummingbirds Hum? Fascinating Answers to Questions about Hummingbirds (all Rutgers University Press).

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Bee Basics	p. 1
What are bees?	p. 1
What is special about honey bees?	p. 2
How many species of bees exist?	p. 4
How are bees classified?	p. 9
What is the earliest evidence of the existence of bees?	p. 10
Where in the world are bees found?	p. 11
Do all bees make honey?	p. 12
Are there different types of bees within one hive of honey bees?	p. 12
What is the role of the workers?	p. 13
What is the role of the drones?	p. 17
What is the role of the queen?	p. 19
Why are bees important?	p. 25
Bee Bodies	p. 27
How does a honey bee develop from an egg to an adult?	p. 27
What do larvae eat?	p. 29
What do bees eat?	p. 30
How long do bees live?	p. 31
Are bees intelligent?	p. 37
Does a bee have a heart?	p. 42
Do bees bleed?	p. 42
How do bees breathe?	p. 43
What do bees see?	p. 44
Do bees have bones?	p. 46
How do bees' wings work?	p. 46
What are the antennae used for?	p. 48
How do bees hold onto slippery surfaces?	p. 48
Bee Behavior	p. 50
Can a bee hear?	p. 50
Is taste important to a bee?	p. 51
How do hungry bees share food?	p. 52
How do bees keep themselves clean?	p. 53
Why do bees buzz?	p. 56
How do bees communicate?	p. 57
What is the waggle dance?	p. 60
What is piping behavior?	p. 63
Can bees tell time?	p. 65
Do bees sleep?	p. 67
Do bees perceive magnetic fields?	p. 68
How do bees navigate?	p. 68
How do bees sense and use polarized light?	p. 70
Do bees ever get fooled by predators?	p. 71
Bee Love	p. 73
How does a bee attract a mate?	p. 73
Do all bees mate?	p. 74
How do bees mate?	p. 74
Why does a queen mate with more than one drone?	p. 76
How many eggs does a honey bee queen lay in a day?	p. 77
How is the sex of a bee determined?	p. 77
What is royal jelly and how does it produce a queen?	p. 78
How is the queen bee chosen?	p. 80
Can bees of one species mate with another species?	p. 81
Can bees be artificially inseminated?	p. 82
Bees in the Hive	p. 84
How many bees are in a colony?	p. 84
How do bees construct their nest?	p. 84
What do bees do all day?	p. 87
Do any bees forage at night?	p. 88
How does the queen control the hive?	p. 88
What is meant by "balling" the queen?	p. 91
What is honeycomb?	p. 91
What is propolis?	p. 92
What is a brood comb?	p. 94
Is there a yearly cycle in the hive?	p. 94
What happens if the bees run out of honey?	p. 96
Bees at Work	p. 97
Why do bees pollinate flowers?	p. 97
Which crops are pollinated by bees?	p. 98
How do flowers attract bees?	p. 101
Are there any flowers that bees prefer or avoid?	p. 104
How do farmers make sure there are enough bees to pollinate their crops?	p. 106
How much weight in pollen can a bee carry?	p. 107
Do bees ever stop collecting nectar?	p. 108
What is buzz pollination?	p. 109
How do bees make beeswax?	p. 110
How is beeswax used in different cultures?	p. 113
Honey	p. 117
What is honey?	p. 117
How does nectar become honey?	p. 118
Why are there so many different kinds of honey?	p. 119
Is honey good for you?	p. 120
What is flea honey or honeydew?	p. 121
How much work does it take for bees to make a jar of honey?	p. 121
How much honey is gathered in the United States every year?	p. 123
Can honey be toxic to humans?	p. 124
What is mead?	p. 127
Bees on the Move	p. 128
Do bees ever move out of their hive?	p. 128
What is swarming?	p. 129
How can you tell when bees are about to swarm?	p. 131
How does the swarm locate its new home?	p. 132
What is supercedure?	p. 133
Do bees migrate?	p. 133
How far do bees fly?	p. 135
How high do bees fly?	p. 136
How do bees locate nectar-rich flowers?	p. 136
How do foraging bees find their way home?	p. 139
What happens to flying bees in bad weather?	p. 140
What is playflight behavior?	p. 140
Bee Stings and Other Defenses	p. 142
Do all bees sting?	p. 142
What does it feel like to be stung by a bee?	p. 143
How does a bee sting?	p. 143
Why do bees sting?	p. 143
Do killer bees really exist?	p. 145
Does a bee die after it has stung somebody?	p. 146
How do stingless bees defend themselves?	p. 147
Is being stung by a bee dangerous?	p. 150
What is bee venom?	p. 151
Does collecting venom kill the bees?	p. 152
How can you avoid being stung by a bee?	p. 153
Are there any natural remedies for bee stings?	p. 153
Dangers to Bees	p. 154
What dangers threaten bees in the environment?	p. 154
How do bees survive harsh weather?	p. 155
What parasites and insects prey on bees?	p. 158
Which other animals prey on bees?	p. 162
Does a bee heal if it gets injured?	p. 164
Do bees get viruses or fungal infections?	p. 164
How are bee diseases spread?	p. 165
Do bees ever need antibiotic drugs?	p. 166
What is dysentery for a bee?	p. 167
What is colony collapse disorder?	p. 167
Beekeeping	p. 169
Is beekeeping dangerous?	p. 169
What does a beekeeper's hive look like?	p. 170
How do beehives vary in other countries?	p. 172
What is a bee skep?	p. 174
How does a beekeeper manage a hive?	p. 176
How does a beekeeper take honey from a hive?	p. 177
Can the beekeeper stop the bees from swarming?	p. 179
Why do some beekeepers clip the queen's wings?	p. 180
Can the beekeeper put a new queen in the hive if the old one dies?	p. 180
What is a smoker?	p. 181
How is beeswax harvested?	p. 183
How can I start my own hive?	p. 183
Are there any reasons why people should not keep bees?	p. 184
How can I safely observe bees?	p. 186
Appendices	p. 189
Bee Organizations	p. 189
Suggestions for Further Reading	p. 191
References	p. 193
Index	p. 221
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