How do bees survive the heat?
Did you know that bees are able to lower the temperature in the hive in summer?
In the summer period, bees have a hard time withstanding the scorching heat of the season. The hives are closed and very narrow environments. The heat generated inside them, if not managed correctly, could kill the entire swarm.
So, how do bees survive the heat? Since bees are very intelligent animals, they have learned to perform a thermoregulatory action, that is, they are able to regulate the temperature in the hive.
How? By implementing specific processes that allow the hive to cool off.
How bees cool off
To refresh the hive , the bees have found a really ingenious way to get good results. The swarms organize themselves through great coordination work. A part of bees continues to travel the path found at the entrance to the hive using their wings as fans.
This continuous and constant process allows the cooler air present outside to enter the hive, effectively creating a real ventilation system .
This solution is possible because bees are very good at collaborating with each other. When a group of bees is positioned "like a fan" at the entrance to the hive and begins to move their wings, a truly efficient ventilation system is created.
As we all know by now, bees' wings can flap up to 12,000 times in just one minute. This makes us understand how the set of hundreds of individuals who carry out ventilation at the same time can actually create a significant flow of fresh air.
The bees collect water to cool the hive
In addition to the ventilation process, bees are forced to integrate the cooling work with other methods as well. The hive is a very congested place where tens of thousands of individuals live.
To try to lower the temperature , the worker bees go outside and collect small drops of water at a time. Once the water has been transported to the hive, the bees distribute it evenly over the cells, creating a very thin film.
Also through ventilation, the water film begins to evaporate, giving relief and freshness to the swarm.
Maintaining an adequate temperature inside the hive is very important especially for younger bees who need lower temperatures to survive (32 ° C - 35 ° C). The adult bees , on the other hand, can tolerate a higher temperature of almost 50 ° C!
Bees are very cooperative animals. The older bees, in some cases, use their bodies to absorb the heat of the warmer walls and then move to the cooler areas of the hive to disperse the heat.
What beekeepers can do to help bees in the summer
In summer it is important that the swarms have water sources from which to draw water. Beekeepers usually place drinkers for bees near the hives or, in any case, containers that can offer all the water the swarms need.
Drinking troughs must have floating surfaces that allow bees to draw water without running the risk of drowning.
The water to which bees are most attracted is usually dirty water made up of organic residues with a high concentration of substances such as mineral salts. Stagnant water attracts bees much more than clean water. Not surprisingly, bees are able to identify water through smell and not through visual analysis.
Positioning of hives in summer
In summer it is important to place your apiary in areas sheltered from the heat. The presence of deciduous trees is ideal as it allows you to have the right shade in the summer but still get good lighting from sunlight in winter.
A good location in the apiary prevents the hives from overheating excessively and thus helps the bees to survive the summer heat.
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