Busy bumblebee works frantically to gather pollen for the winter

This busy little bee is working her tail off to gather pollen from sunflowers as winter rapidly approaches. The colder weather tells these little creatures to work faster so that they will be able to make enough honey for the winter. Bumblebees are social animals, similar to honeybees, but their nests consist of up to 50 individuals. In comparison, honeybee colonies may consist of 20,000 to 80,000 worker bees.

Bumblebees actually feed on nectar. They are unable to digest the pollen. But pollen is used to make honey, which feeds the colony during winter months. Bees secrete a waxy substance from their abdomen that resembles dandruff. These flakes are gathered and molded to form wax pots and cells for honey storage. Occasionally, the wax is also used to line the outside of a nest.

Of all the bees, bumblebees are capable of flight at the lowest temperature. They have insulated nests and they are capable of shivering to warm up.
Bees are incredibly complex creatures, often referred to as biological robots due to their ability to complete tasks and display cognitive ability, despite the fact that brains consist of far less neurons than the human brain. Many scientists have proposed that the function of the bee brain would be a better model for artificial intelligence than the human brain.

Bees are a wonder of nature and they are mesmerizing to watch. And whether we love them or fear them, there is no denying that we are dependent on them for our survival.