Worker honey bees are all female. Honey bees go through a tedious process to make honey. They collect pollen from flowers, they process the nectar to make the honey, and then they dry the honey. Honeybees also divide their colonies into 3 sections. The workers collect the pollen and bring it back to the hive, build the hive and protect it from danger, and circulate the air in the hive by beating their wings together.  Honeybees are crucial pollinators for plants. 

Fun Fact: 1 ounce of honey would fuel a bee's flight around the world. 

For thousands of years, people have used honey bee venom and the actual honey for medicinal uses. The honey from these bees has been used as an antibiotic, an antioxidant, an antimicrobial, and an anti-inflammatory, and it has some anticancer properties. Bees have been known to sense illness in humans. Scientists have also found that bees emit a "healing" frequency. Researchers have been studying how honey bee venom affects the nervous system. As time goes on Scientists have found that this venom can react in the central nervous system and can treat diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and lateral sclerosis. 

Fun Fact: Honey bees can fly up to 15 miles per hour. 

Bees are native to Eurasia but scientists found a fossil that proves that a species of honey bees lived in North America over 14 million years ago. Even though this species of honey bees is extinct, we have Europe to that for the bees we have today. In the 17th century, we imported honey bees from Europe and they have been useful ever since. These creatures may seem scary but they are extremely small. Honey bees are an average of 1.2cm. But if you think this small insect has no power you are sadly mistaken. 

Fun Fact: In a single year, 1 honey bee colony can gather 40 pounds of pollen and 265 pounds of nectar. 

There are many types of honey bees from all around the world. Some of the most common honey bees are Apis Mellifera which is the Western European honey bee, Apis M. Mellifera which is the dark or German honey bee, Apis Mellifera Ligustica or the Italian honey bee, Apis Mellifera Carnica which is the Grey or Carneolan honey bee, Apis Mellifera Caucasica or the Caucasian honey bee, Apis Mellifera Iberiensis which are the Iberian or Gibraltar honey bee, and the Apis Mellifera Scutellata or Africanised honey bee. Honey bees are perennial in Ohio but are less active during the colder months. Honey bees thrive in warmer seasons but they have many requirements to keep them thriving. Honey bees need a vast amount of flora to get pollen from, a safe place to create a nest, water, and warm temperatures to keep them busy. 

Fun Fact: A honey bee worker only makes an average of 1/12 of a teaspoon in her lifetime.