How Honey Bees Beat The Heat?

As we all know, honey bees live in a big and congested nest which we often see at trees and hollows with narrow openings. Human beings tend to cool themselves down as the temperature rises, and so do bees and other birds. In this small guide, you will learn how honeybees beat the heat?

Generally, people don’t know that honey bees are susceptible to temperature so the hive must have adequate ventilation while the brood is incubating.

Researchers have developed a framework which helps us to know how bees use the environmental omens to ventilate the hive.

Giant Honey Bees Act Like a Combined Lung to Beat the Heat

Asian giant bees provide coolness to the baby bees by synchronized movements. They push the warm air out of the hive and suck the cool air in. The entire province of the bees works all together to keep the hive cold on a toasty day.

Honey bees form a living insulating cloak inside the hive which is commonly known as the bee curtain. This curtain provides frigidity and shelter to the bees from contagious elements.

Beating Wings like Fans

In summers, the temperature of the hive gets too high. So, to maintain the average temperature, i.e., 32-35 degree Celsius, bees beat their wings like the fan and circulate the air into the entire hive.

Collecting Water Droplets

Firstly, adult bees collect the water droplets by sucking the water into their own body and place them into the hive. After that, Honey bees queue up in front of the hive’s entrance and start moving their wings like fans which constitute the air current which assists in pushing the cool air inside by evaporating the droplets of water.

Sometimes bees paint the water droplets from the tongue in a thin film, over the brood cells and due to this water evaporates and gives cooling to the hive.  At this time, worker bees push hot air out of the hive with their wings, while other bees open the passways for hot air to move out of the hive.

Defecation Process

To dump the excessive heat bees often fly altogether and pass out the cluster and other body wastes outside. This process maintains the adequate temperature of the hive and reduces the speculations of hive overheating. Defecation process is profoundly efficient because honeybees have an ample supply of nectar flow.

Legs Against Comb

In one brawny motion, the carpet of bees covering the hive lifts away from the honeycomb. This process lowers the air pressure in the hive, which allows fresh air to pour in.

When worker bees push their legs against the honeycomb hive “inhales” the fresh air at that time, and while they relax their bodies hive “exhales” the hot air.