How do bees get pollen from flowers? We will take a look at pollen gathering in bees and how these amazing creatures collect, store and ferment pollen to make food for the hive.
The thorax and a little of the head are covered in hairs that are branched or plumose. As the bee rummages around in flowers, it becomes covered in pollen that sticks to these plumose hairs.
I remember once watching carpenter bees foraging on Keurboom trees. This tree is a beautiful leguminous species, and carpenter bees are able to force the flowers open and access the pollen.
The majority of the bees kept in North America are not adapted to deal with the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida. These beetles can lay eggs in pollen stores, and this can lead to outbreaks of beetles.