Some Insects Live in Hives

The honeybee and bumblebee are very social insects. They live and work in large colonies, and build large nests or hives.

Bees

Bees live in colonies, often with several hundred bees sharing the same hive or nest. The hive is usually built in the ground, in trees, or even buildings.

Worker bees collect pollen and nectar from flowers which are used to create wax to build the hive. The queen bee creates the wax in her abdomen, which she uses to build chambers or cells where she lays her eggs.

In the process of building their hive, bees play a very important role pollinating flowers and plants. As a bee gathers nectar from a flower, tiny grains of pollen will stick to its hairy legs and body. When the bee flies to another flower for nectar, the pollen on its legs and body brushes off to help furtilize the flower.