Honeybee

Order/family: Hymenoptera/Apidae

Scientific Name: Apis mellifera

Description: Honeybees have three castes in their colonies: workers, drones, and a singular queen. Workers are 1/2” to 5/8” long and have well developed heads with two short antenna and large eyes. Because they are covered with fine hairs, they have a fuzzy yellow-brown to black appearance. The abdomen has a striped appearance. There are two pairs of wings, the hind pair shorter than the front. Workers have a barbed stinger at the end of their abdomen that is used to protect the colony. The back pair of legs is modified for the collection and transport of pollen. Honeybees have a long tongue-like mouthpart which allows them to collect nectar from flowers. Queens are the largest member of the colony measuring 5/8” to 3/4” long, and except for their size, the look nearly identical to the worker bees. Drones are about 5/8” long and much stouter and darker than workers or the queen. Drones do not have stingers.