Summer is a prime time to spot buzzing bees, but did you know that the weather can impact bee behavior?
- Rain: Bees collect nectar and pollen during the daylight hours, sometimes visiting between 50 and 100 flowers in one day. But, rain in the forecast can slow them down significantly by chilling bees’ flight muscles to the point that they cannot fly.
- Wind: Bees generally do not fly in high winds and wind can slow down their pollen collection.
- Temperature: From late winter to early fall, bees keep the hive nursery at a temperature between 91 and 97 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure that young grow properly. If the hive gets too hot, worker bees cool down by fanning their wings or spreading water on the comb to eliminate heat by evaporation.
Viewer Tip: Bees play an important role in agriculture and plant reproduction through pollination. You can give bees a hand by planting a diversity of blooming plants, reducing pesticide use and leaving pieces of undisturbed wild habitat in your yard.
Season: Summer
(Sources: “The Buzz About Bees: A Flush Fund of Fascinating Facts,”http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bees/buzz.html and “Anatomy of a Hive,” http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bees/hive.html, NOVA online; University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Apis mellifera: http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Apis_mellifera.html; ATTRA – National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service. Learn more in “Alterative Pollinators: Native Bees” – www.attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/nativebee.html.)
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