What Do Honey Bees Do in Winter?

A question I always get asked is, what do honey bees do in winter? Well, I decided that it was probably a good question too.

Honey bees are one of the most fascinating creatures on Earth, known for their remarkable ability to survive and thrive in extreme environments. As the temperatures in Elmer fall and winter really sets in, honey bees adapt so that they stand the best chance of survival. Understanding what honey bees do during the colder months can deepen our appreciation for these vital pollinators. Let’s explore the world of honey bees in winter.

The Challenge of Winter for Honey Bees

Winter presents significant challenges for honey bees. Unlike many other insects that hibernate or die off in colder months, honey bees remain active inside their hive. However, they face two significant challenges:

1. Temperature Regulation: Honey bees are cold-blooded and cannot survive freezing temperatures. They must keep their hive warm enough to sustain life.
2. Food Supply: With no flowers blooming in winter, honey bees cannot forage for nectar or pollen. They rely entirely on the honey they’ve stored during the warmer months.

How Honey Bees Prepare for Winter

Preparation is key to the survival of a honey bee colony during winter. As autumn approaches, honey bees begin several crucial tasks:

1. Honey Storage: Honey bees work relentlessly during spring and summer to collect nectar, which they convert into honey. This stored honey becomes their primary food source during winter. A healthy hive typically requires 20-30 pounds of honey to sustain the colony through the cold months.
2. Population Adjustment: The queen honey bee slows down her egg-laying in late summer, reducing the number of bees in the colony. This ensures that there are a lot less mouths to feed during winter while maintaining a good workforce to keep the hive warm.
3. Hive Insulation: Honey bees seal cracks in the hive using a resin-like substance called propolis and is like a natural glue that helps retain heat and protect the colony from cold drafts.

The Winter Cluster: Nature’s Survival Strategy

One of the honey bee’s most extraordinary adaptations is its ability to form a “winter cluster.” This behaviour enables the colony to produce and conserve heat, ensuring survival even in freezing temperatures.

1. Formation: As temperatures drop, the bees huddle in a tight cluster around the queen and any brood (developing larvae). The bees outside the cluster act as insulation, while those inside generate heat by vibrating their flight muscles.
2. Temperature Maintenance: When brood is present, the core of a honey bee cluster stays around 34°C. If there are no eggs or larvae, the temperature drops slightly to save energy. The outer bees stay at about 8°C, just warm enough to survive.
3. Rotation: Bees take turns moving from the colder outer layers to the warmer inner layers of the cluster, ensuring that no individual bee gets too cold.

How Do Honey Bees Eat in Winter?

While clustered, honey bees consume the honey they’ve stored during the year. Worker bees move through the hive, eating honey and sharing it with the rest of the colony. This energy is critical for maintaining the vibrations that generate heat.

Do Honey Bees Leave the Hive in Winter?

Honey bees mostly stay in their hive during winter but will occasionally take short trips outside for “cleansing flights” to go to the bathroom and keep the hive clean.

The Role of the Beekeeper in Winter

Beekeepers help honey bees get through winter by ensuring they have what they need to stay healthy and safe.

Here are some key steps we take to try and make the honey bees life easier in winter:

1. Ensuring Adequate Food Supplies: Beekeepers check hives in late autumn to ensure enough honey is stored. If supplies are low, they may provide supplemental feeding with sugar syrup or fondant. I check my bees every 2 weeks on average through winter.
2. Providing Insulation: Adding insulation around the hive or using specially designed winter covers helps bees conserve heat. We add DPM plastic around our hives to help prevent drafts and keep the hive dry.
3. Reducing Moisture: Moisture is a more significant threat to bees than cold. Beekeepers ensure proper ventilation to prevent condensation from forming inside the hive.
4. Monitoring for Pests: Pests like Varroa mites can weaken a colony, making it harder for bees to survive winter. Beekeepers often treat for mites in late summer or early autumn.

What Happens if the Winter is Too Harsh?

Despite their resilience, honey bees can still succumb to extreme winter conditions. Factors that can threaten a colony include:

• Insufficient Honey Stores: If the bees run out of honey, they may starve before spring arrives.
• Extended Cold Spells: Long periods of freezing temperatures can make it difficult for bees to access their honey stores, even within the hive, which leads to starvation.
• Disease and Pests: Illness or pest infestations can weaken a colony, making it less likely to survive. Mice and other rodents can often get inside a honey bee hive and cause havoc.

The Arrival of Spring

Spring is my favourite time of year, as the temperatures start to rise and flowers start to bloom. The honey bee colony starts to break from its winter cluster. The queen honey bee starts laying her eggs again, and the worker bees start gathering nectar and pollen. The hive quickly becomes a bustling hub of activity, rebuilding to rebuild for the summer months ahead.

Conclusion

Winter is stressful and worrying for me and many other beekeepers. We hope that we have done everything to help the bees have a nice, easy winter and that as many bee colonies as possible survive winter.

By understanding and supporting these remarkable insects, beekeepers can help preserve honey bees and their vital role in our ecosystems.

Appreciating what honey bees do all through the year and what they have to endure so that we can enjoy the wonderful taste of honey is remarkable, so please don’t waste honey and support a local beekeeper.