Beekeeping involves managing honey bee colonies. Bees are social insects that evolved from wasps millions of years ago. A bee colony consists of one queen, thousands of female worker bees, and hundreds of male drones. Workers perform different tasks as they age, initially cleaning cells, then receiving and storing nectar and pollen, before becoming foragers. The queen lays eggs and controls the colony with pheromones. Workers care for larvae, build comb, regulate temperature, and defend the hive. Colonies have distinct seasons for foraging, brood production, and swarming or supersedure of the queen.

2. What is Beekeeping?
 Beekeeping is Applied Bee Biology
Beekeeping is Colony Population
Management

3. Rock bee and its hives

4. Little bee and its hives

5. Indian bee and its hive

6. Bee History
Evolved from wasps perhaps 150 million years ago
A recently found fossilized bee dates back 97 million
years
First honey bee appeared 20-25 million years ago
Bee keeping” by humans occurred 3,500 years ago

7. Bees Are Social
(Eusocial)
Reproductive division of work
Have sterile castes
Cooperate in care of young

10. Colony

13. External Anatomy

16. Four pairs of glands, sometimes called
mirrors.
During the wax forming period in the life
of a worker, the glands greatly thicken
and take on their glandular structure.
The wax is discharged as a liquid,
hardens to small flakes or scales, and sits
in wax pockets. The wax scale is then
transferred to the mandibles where it is
chewed into a compact mass.
After the worker bee outgrows the wax
forming period, the glands degenerate
and become a flat layer of cells.
Wax Gland(s):

17. Workers have a Nasanoff gland at the end of their
abdomen
This Nasanoff gland is used by the guard bees at the hive
entrance to disseminate a scent that guides young bees
back to the entrance during early flights.

18. On the end of the female bee's abdomen is the ovipositor (stinger).
The ovipositor of the worker bee is barbed so that it remains
imbedded into whatever the honeybee stings.
 In its struggle to free itself, a portion of the bee (stinger, venom sac)
is left behind, which damages her enough to kill her.
 The venom sac continues to contract by reflex action, continuously
pumping venom into the wound for several seconds.
The queen’s ovipositor is slightly barbed and is “reusable”: It’s used to
kill rival queens.

20. Life Cycle

21. The Birthing Room – Eggs & Larva(e)

22. About to be capped
About to pupate

23. Pupa(e)

24. Basic Biology Development

25. Adults

26. One queen (normally)
•Only actively reproducing
female
•Can produce 1,500 eggs per day
at the height of the brood season
•Can live for 2-4 yrs
•Controls the hive through
pheromones
Queen

27. Workers
Female
Usually do not reproduce
Responsible for most of the
work
•Colony will have 20,000
-70,000+
•Live for 4-6 weeks in summer,
4-5 months in winter

28. Drone & Worker Cells

29. Queen Cells
Worker cells are horizontal while queen cells are
vertical
As the queen larva grows, the cell enlarges and
becomes peanut-shaped when capped for the pupal
stage of development

30. Drones
Males
Sexually mature at 2 weeks
Mate with female queens while in flight
Upon mating they die
Removed from the hive in late fall

31. Division of Labor
Among females (reproduction)
Among workers (tasks)
Not fixed somewhat plastic
Depends upon
Age or development of the bee
Needs of the colony

32. Young bees:
1 to 10 days
•Cell cleaning
•Tend brood
•Cap brood
•Attend queen
Workers

33. Middle-aged bees:
10 to 20 days old
•Receive nectar & pollen
•Comb building
•Hive cleaning
Debris removal
Climate control

34. Old bees:
20 days until death
(30-45 days)
Foraging
◦Nectar
◦Pollen
◦Water
Hive defense

35. Foraging -Efforts
To make 1 lb honey
Bees visit 2,000,000 flowers
Gather 8-10 lbs nectar
Fly 55,000 miles
The life work of 1 bee =
1/12 teaspoon honey
To make 1 lb wax
Need to consume 8-10 lbs honey

36. Foraging
Conveys direction & distance to nectar and pollen
sources
Round Dance Waggle Dance

37. Division of Labor
Reproduction
The Queen is the primary reproductive unit of the
hive
Fertilized eggs may become either workers or queens
To become a queen, a larva must:
◦Be fed royal jelly
◦Be fed more food
◦Have a larger cell

38. New Queens arise due to:
Swarming
The queen initiates a new queen in the hive.
She then leaves with a portion of the workers
& starts a new hive
Supersedure
Workers kill off the old queen & new queens are formed.
Generally to save the existing colony

39. Seasons of the Hive
 Winter
•Maintenance of colony &
temperature
•Conservation of food
 Spring
•Increase brood production
•Start of foraging
 Summer
 •Foraging
 •Brood production
 •Comb production
 •Drone development
 •Swarming & queen mating
 Autumn
 •Maintenance of colony
 •Conservation of food
 •Reduce brood
 •Death of drones