- Lifespan
- Workers 5–6 weeks (summer) or 4–6 months (winter); queens 2–5 years; drones 5–7 weeks
- Size & Weight
- Workers 12–15 mm; queens 18–20 mm; drones 15–17 mm
- Habitat
- Gardens, parks, woodlands, heathland, and agricultural areas with abundant flowering plants and suitable nesting sites.
- UK Distribution
- Found throughout the UK, both as managed hives and feral colonies. Resident year-round, though activity is seasonal.
- Diet
- Adults feed on nectar and pollen; larvae are fed royal jelly and pollen by worker bees.
- Predators
- Wasps, hornets, robber flies, bee-eaters, badgers, and mice; parasitic mites such as Varroa destructor are a major threat.
- Mating Season
- Late spring to early autumn, with mating flights occurring in summer.
- Breeding
- Queens lay eggs in hexagonal cells; worker brood develops in 21 days, drone brood in 24 days. Multiple broods per season; a strong colony may produce 50,000+ individuals by summer.
- Behaviour
- Honeybees are highly social, living in colonies of 20,000–80,000 individuals with distinct castes (queen, workers, drones). They communicate through the waggle dance to share information about flower locations. Colonies are defensive near the hive but generally docile when foraging.