Why Do Bees Beard?

Honeybees can heat and cool their hives to keep the temperature comfortable. Learn about one method -- bearding -- in this episode of BrainStuff.

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey,
brain Stuff, Lauren vocal bamb here. Did you know that
one bee has to fly approximately nine miles that's a
kilometers or about three times around the earth and gather
nectar from some two million flowers to make a mere

(00:22):
pound or half a kilo of honey. That's a lot
of work for just one little APIs malafera. So it's
a good thing that honeybees are well organized, task oriented
insects who stick together in huge families of several thousand
workers per hive. And did you know that the honeybee
is the only insect that produces food eaten by humans

(00:42):
and that honey never expires. Archaeologists have found pots of
still edible honey in ancient Egyptian tombs that are thousands
of years old. That's because honey is hygroscopic. It's great
at absorbing moisture, so it'll basically desiccate any bacteria or
mold that try to eat it. And it's a set
with a pH somewhere between three point five and four

(01:02):
point oh. It's about as acidic as orange juice. A
groundbreaking study led by biologists at the University of California,
San Diego consolidates scientific data from around the globe to
show that the honeybee is the most successful pollinator in
the world, the most important single species of pollinator in
natural ecosystems, and the single most frequent pollinator of naturally

(01:24):
occurring flowers and non crop plants on Earth. That's a
pretty big, vital deal for the planet and no small feet.
For creatures with a brain the size of a sesame seed,
they're amazing. B two B communication skills allow them to pipe,
that is, buzz, waggle or advance, and beard in order

(01:45):
to protect themselves and their life's mission making honey But
let's go back to that last one. What the heck
is bearding and why do honeybees do it? It's all
about keeping cool. Honey Bees are able to regulate the
temperature of their hive throughout year. In winter months, they
raise the hives temperature by huddling together and vibrating their
wings to generate body heat and keep warm. It's sort

(02:08):
of like if you were too jog in place or
rub your arms to warm up. But in the summer months,
the average temperature of the hive should be between ninety
and nine degrees fahrenheit that's thirty two thirty five celsius.
If it gets too hot, the bees will fan their
wings to lower the temperature and circulate air throughout the hive.
Sometimes they collect and place droplets of water inside the

(02:30):
hive and then queue up at the hives entrance and
fan their wings, creating air currents that evaporate the water
and push cool air inside. And while the fanners are
outside fanning, there are bees on the inside fanning as well.
In summer severely hot weather, when the temperatures rise to
extremes and the hives population is large and crowded due
to an abundance of nectar flow, the bees head and

(02:52):
mass out of the nest and cluster outside the hive
to try to remain cool and keep the hive from overheating,
which could kill the next generation of bees that are
growing or hatching. Busy bee activity inside the hive generates
a lot of heat, so they leave the hive and
cling to the outside. Then create even more airflow than
regular fanning by huddling together and beating their wings. This

(03:15):
activity is called bearding because the formation that the bees
make on the outside of the hive is shaped sort
of like a beard. It's a natural, normal behavior and
should not be confused with swarming, which occurs when the
bees all get together and decided to leave the hive
for greener pastures. So if you see a bunch of
bees in beard formation hanging outside their hive, have no fear.

(03:36):
Think of them as amazing Apien generators. Society of worrying
little porch fans buzzing up a breeze to try and
beat the heat inside. Today's episode was written by Carrie
Tato and produced by Tyler Claying. Brain Stuff is production
of i Heeart Radios how Stuff Works. For more in
this and lots of other buzzworthy topics, visit our home

(03:59):
planet as to works dot com, and for more podcasts
from my heart Radio, visit the i Heart Radio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
H