The Short Life of a Drone

We kicked off the week by diving into the life of the colony’s most misunderstood member. The drone, the poor dramatic dude. The ones that don’t get to mate just spend the summer eating honey and freeloading. When fall comes, workers kick them out for good. It’s harsh but efficient, and also kinda entertaining to watch them get evicted.

Honeybees and Their Two “Stomachs”

Honeybees don’t eat meat of any kind, in fact they’re two main sources of sustainence is pollen and nectar, all from the flowers they visit. Nectar is full of energy in the form of natural sugars. Forager bees collect it from flowers using their tongues and carry it back to the hive in a secondary storage space called a “crop”. It’s not technically a stomach as it doesn’t aid in digestion or provide immediate energy to the bee (there’s a valve that allows small amounts into the bees “stomach” stomach when it needs energy). When the worker bee gets home with the nectar, it passes it to a separate bee in a process called trophallaxis. Say that five times fast. They even lower the water content within the soon-to-be honey by flapping their wings as they pass it back and forth, like tiny little dehumidifiers. The most interesting substance is “royal jelly”. This is produced by young nurse bees. Every larvae gets fed royal jelly for the first small bit of their lives, but only ONE gets fed it continuously, and that’s the bee they decide to make the queen. A singular diet of just royal jelly changes the trajectory of development for one lucky bee, depending on how you look at it.

Oatmeal Beeswax Soap

Saturday, we put the spotlight on our oatmeal soap. This one deserves a the brag. We use ground oats in our oatmeal soap. It provides gentle exfoliation that isn’t abrasive. Our queen bee Vanessa uses it as a face soap, and Lexi uses it on her dog that has skin allergies! The subtle yummy scent comes from cassia essential oil so it’s safe for sensitive skin!

From the dramatic life of a drone to the quiet magic of royal jelly to a bar of soap that works for the whole family (pets included), there’s always something worth learning when you look a little closer at what the bees are up to. Thanks for reading!
-The Miel Crew