Page 34 - The Miracle of the Honeybee

32 THE MIRACLE OF THE HONEYBEE

One of the most
important duties
of worker bees is
the cleanliness of
the hive. The pic-
ture to the side
shows worker
bees opening the
covers of the cells
from which the
larvae have
emerged, check-
ing whether these
cells are fit for the
queen to lay eggs
in, and occupying
themselves with
cleaning.

ties. Tens of thousands of bees act with complete harmony, and order in
the hive is quickly established with no confusion ever arising.
A worker bee’s first job is cleaning. Emerging from the pupa, a bee im-
mediately sets about this task. Beginning with its own cell, it cleans the
brood cells for the first two days. Since the queen lays eggs constantly,
there is an ongoing need for empty cells. As the cells empty out, they
therefore need to be cleaned in preparation for new eggs.
The worker bee enters the cell it is to clean and remains in it sometimes
for several minutes, carefully licking and cleaning the cell walls. In addi-
tion, the new-hatched worker bees also spend their first two days explor-
ing the hive in order to get their bearings—since later in their lives, the
workers will be responsible for the general cleanliness of the hive as a
whole. 15