HeadThe bee’s head contains it’s

sensory organs –eyes, antenna, etc.

ThoraxThe thorax is where legs and wings are attatched

AbdomenThe abdomen contains the digestive and reproductive

organs

LegsHoney bees have three pairs of segmented legs, used primarily for walking. Their legs however also have specialized areas such as the antennae cleaner on the

forelegs, and the pollen press/baskets on their hind legs.

WingsBees have four wings, two on

each side. Their fore wings are much larger than their hind

wings but together they propel the bee forward by not only flapping, but twisting like a

propeller on each up and down stroke.

EyesHoney bees, like other insects such as flies, etc., have compound eyes. This

means their eyes are made up of thousands of miniscule lenses called

facets. It is thought that the brain receives an image from each of these little lenses and puts them together

like a mosaic. An advantage of compound eyes is that they detect

movement. This is the reason honey bees are more likely to respond to a

moving flower than a still one.

EyesBees also see different colours to

humans. For example, they cannot see red at all! For the most part they

see 6 main colours: yellow, blue-green, blue, ultraviolet, violet, and a

special colour known as “bee’s purple”, a mixture of yellow and

ultraviolet. They see blue-green, violet and ‘bee’s

purple’ colours best.

AntennaeHoney bee antennae can move freely, set in small socket-like

areas on their heads and connected to the brain through a large double nerve, necessary for conveying all the crucial sensory

information.

AntennaeThe tiny sensory hairs all over

the antennae are responsive to touch and odor.

Proboscis / tongueBees have long tongues for

reaching the nectar deep inside flowers. They are hollow, like

straws, and are kept rolled up. When the bee goes to drink, it

unrolls its long tongue, and sucks the nectar through it like we would drink through a straw.

Proboscis / tongueThey also use their tongues to lick and clean themselves and other bees, as well as the hive

itself.

MandiblesBees have a pair of

mandibles, working like pliers or pincers on either side of their head. Mandibles are used for

cutting, grasping carrying, fighting, biting, and

working with wax to construct the honey comb.

StingerMost people will tell you that

honey bees die when they sting people, which is true most of the time, because honey bees only have one barbed stinger, when

they stick it through human skin it gets stuck and rips away the

end of their abdomen.