The queen s attendant bees groom and feed her, up to 80 times her weight daily. Honey bees evolved between 150 - 180 million years ago. Bees can carry nearly their own weight in nectar and pollen. Bees attempting to enter a different hive will be killed as intruders although bees returning with nectar may be admitted. All bees in a hive share a common odour, emanating from the queen s pheromones.
Bees communicate by vibration and chemical cues.
They are deaf to most sounds and are mute. Beekeepers migrate hives between forest and agricultural crops to ensure year-round hive strength and honey production. Honey bees will sting in defence of their hive or their lives. B.C. shows 2 men climbing to a cave containing bees and removing honeycomb in a basket. In 3000 B.C. Egyptians kept written records of beekeeping activities.