Honey Bee anatomy
Honey Bees have bodily features common to all insects including a hard exoskeleton that protects internal organs and prevents desiccation. As the Honey bee grows this exoskeleton is shed (University of Arizona, life sciences 2013). They typically have three body segments consisting of the head, thorax and abdomen. The Honey bees head houses the bees sensory organs and appendages for ingestion. The thorax section of the bee includes appendages wings and legs which allow the bee to perform in locomotion. The abdomen is responsible for the housing of organs that aid in reproduction and digestion (University of Arizona, life sciences 2013).
Important adaptations Honey Bees have evolved to allow them to be the most successful pollinators include:
Abdomen: Wax and some of the scent glands are housed here in the adult. The sting is also located in a pocket at the end of the abdomen in adult female bees.
Wings: Allow the ability for the bee to fly and expand its distribution. Wings allow bees to forage up to three miles from hives and fly up to 24km/h. They have four separate wings, however small hooks hamuli, on the edge of the hind wing fits into a groove on the trailing edge of the fore wing which allow the bee to group the wings together to form a single flight surface (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012).
Eyes: A honey bee is aided in site by the addition of five eyes. Two of these eyes are highly specialized compound eyes which consist of over 4500 'little eyes' or ommatidia, which allows the bee to see in front, to the side, above and below itself (Srinivasan, M. V. 2010). The honey bee was also the second non-human organism to be determined as obtaining colour vision (Srinivasan, M. V. 2010). These compound eyes are highly specialized as they also allow bees to detect polarization of UV light as they see UV light as a separate colour, aiding them in navigation and flight in low light scenarios (Labhart, T. 1980) (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012). The other three eyes are simple eyes ocelli, grouped together on the top of the bees head and help in determining the amount of light present in the environment.
Antennae: The honey bee has two antennae that house thousands of sensory organs, each with a specific purpose. mechanoreceptors are specialized for touch, odor receptors aid in smell, and gustatory receptors aid in taste (de Brito Sanchez, M. G., 2011)). They are also used by Honey bees to detect sound, an important sensory system used by the bees when foraging, as they use sound to perform 'the waggle dance', to inform nest mates about direction and distance to attractive food (Wheeler, W. M., 1994) (Seita Tsujiuchi, S. et al' 2007).
Branched Setae: Branched setae cover the body of the bee and is unique to bees, it also the main trait distinguishing bees from their closest common ancestor the wasp. The setae on bees being branched allows them to capture pollen grains. (Hoopingarner R.A., Waller G.D., 1992).
Legs: The bee has six legs providing stability and a base for walking and standing with at least three legs contacting the ground at any one time when moving. Claws are equipped with sticky pads for gripping surfaces. Setae on legs also aid in the grooming of pollen and debris from the bees body (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012).
Corbicula: The Corbicula otherwise known as the 'pollen basket' is where the pollen is compacted into and stored for transportation back to the hive.
Proboscis: The proboscis of the honey bee is a long, slender and hairy tongue. It acts somewhat like a straw, bringing liquid and food (nectar, pollen, honey and water) to the mouth.
Wax Glands: Honey bees contain four pairs of glands on the underside of the bees abdomen which thickens into a glandular structure in the wax forming period of the worker Honey bee. These glands secrete flakes of beeswax, which is then used in the construction of honeycombs.
Mandibles: The Honey bee has a pair of mandibles on either side of the head. The mandible is responsible for the cutting and grasping of objects, and is used in constructing combs, aiding in releasing pollen from the anther of the flower as well as gripping enemies during nest fights.
Warning Colours: The colour of the Honey bee (black and yellow/orange) is unique in the insect world and sends out warning signals to potential predators that they may be harmful (due to the aid of their sting). These colour patterns are also seen in their closest common ancestor the wasp.
Stinger: The stinger is simply a modified ovipositor (egg laying structure) that ejects venom instead of eggs as found on other insects, therefore only female Honey bees can possess a stinger. The stinger is found in a chamber at the end of the abdomen, where a sharp pointed shaft protrudes, it is barbed so it is able to penetrate skin however difficult to remove. The needle consists of three sections including a ridged stylet, and two bottom sections called the lancets which move back and forth on the ridges of the stylet, allowing the needle to be driven deeper into the skin. The poison canals are enclosed in the lancets, venom is excreted from the poison canal via two acid glands that secrete into the poison sac. When the sting is used the contents of the acid glands are dumped into the poison canal and mixed with acidic portion. Once the bee has used its stinger, the stinger and venom sac is unattached from the bees abdomen as it tries to fly away from the stung object, causing enough damage for the bee to die shortly after (University of Arizona, life sciences 2013).
Important adaptations Honey Bees have evolved to allow them to be the most successful pollinators include:
Abdomen: Wax and some of the scent glands are housed here in the adult. The sting is also located in a pocket at the end of the abdomen in adult female bees.
Wings: Allow the ability for the bee to fly and expand its distribution. Wings allow bees to forage up to three miles from hives and fly up to 24km/h. They have four separate wings, however small hooks hamuli, on the edge of the hind wing fits into a groove on the trailing edge of the fore wing which allow the bee to group the wings together to form a single flight surface (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012).
Eyes: A honey bee is aided in site by the addition of five eyes. Two of these eyes are highly specialized compound eyes which consist of over 4500 'little eyes' or ommatidia, which allows the bee to see in front, to the side, above and below itself (Srinivasan, M. V. 2010). The honey bee was also the second non-human organism to be determined as obtaining colour vision (Srinivasan, M. V. 2010). These compound eyes are highly specialized as they also allow bees to detect polarization of UV light as they see UV light as a separate colour, aiding them in navigation and flight in low light scenarios (Labhart, T. 1980) (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012). The other three eyes are simple eyes ocelli, grouped together on the top of the bees head and help in determining the amount of light present in the environment.
Antennae: The honey bee has two antennae that house thousands of sensory organs, each with a specific purpose. mechanoreceptors are specialized for touch, odor receptors aid in smell, and gustatory receptors aid in taste (de Brito Sanchez, M. G., 2011)). They are also used by Honey bees to detect sound, an important sensory system used by the bees when foraging, as they use sound to perform 'the waggle dance', to inform nest mates about direction and distance to attractive food (Wheeler, W. M., 1994) (Seita Tsujiuchi, S. et al' 2007).
Branched Setae: Branched setae cover the body of the bee and is unique to bees, it also the main trait distinguishing bees from their closest common ancestor the wasp. The setae on bees being branched allows them to capture pollen grains. (Hoopingarner R.A., Waller G.D., 1992).
Legs: The bee has six legs providing stability and a base for walking and standing with at least three legs contacting the ground at any one time when moving. Claws are equipped with sticky pads for gripping surfaces. Setae on legs also aid in the grooming of pollen and debris from the bees body (DR. J. D. HOPKINS, et al', 2012).
Corbicula: The Corbicula otherwise known as the 'pollen basket' is where the pollen is compacted into and stored for transportation back to the hive.
Proboscis: The proboscis of the honey bee is a long, slender and hairy tongue. It acts somewhat like a straw, bringing liquid and food (nectar, pollen, honey and water) to the mouth.
Wax Glands: Honey bees contain four pairs of glands on the underside of the bees abdomen which thickens into a glandular structure in the wax forming period of the worker Honey bee. These glands secrete flakes of beeswax, which is then used in the construction of honeycombs.
Mandibles: The Honey bee has a pair of mandibles on either side of the head. The mandible is responsible for the cutting and grasping of objects, and is used in constructing combs, aiding in releasing pollen from the anther of the flower as well as gripping enemies during nest fights.
Warning Colours: The colour of the Honey bee (black and yellow/orange) is unique in the insect world and sends out warning signals to potential predators that they may be harmful (due to the aid of their sting). These colour patterns are also seen in their closest common ancestor the wasp.
Stinger: The stinger is simply a modified ovipositor (egg laying structure) that ejects venom instead of eggs as found on other insects, therefore only female Honey bees can possess a stinger. The stinger is found in a chamber at the end of the abdomen, where a sharp pointed shaft protrudes, it is barbed so it is able to penetrate skin however difficult to remove. The needle consists of three sections including a ridged stylet, and two bottom sections called the lancets which move back and forth on the ridges of the stylet, allowing the needle to be driven deeper into the skin. The poison canals are enclosed in the lancets, venom is excreted from the poison canal via two acid glands that secrete into the poison sac. When the sting is used the contents of the acid glands are dumped into the poison canal and mixed with acidic portion. Once the bee has used its stinger, the stinger and venom sac is unattached from the bees abdomen as it tries to fly away from the stung object, causing enough damage for the bee to die shortly after (University of Arizona, life sciences 2013).