Summer Bees vs Winter Bees
There is a difference in summer bees and winter bees even though they are from the same queen.
Summer honey bees only live between 3 and 6 weeks. They have tons of work to do including raising new bees, cleaning the hive, gathering nectar AND, most importantly, making and storing honey. They are busy 24/7 and literally work themselves to death.
Winter honey bees live longer than summer honey bees. In fact, much longer! Winter bees are completely different in their make up. They have more fat bodies on them that help with their survival. Winter bees can live up to 6 months in the hive, forming a cluster to keep the queen warm and toasty.
Winter bees stay inside the hive for months at a time unlike their summer counterparts who leave the hive hundreds of times a day. The only time the bees leave the hive in the winter is if the outside temperature is 55 degrees or higher. These are called cleansing flights in which the bees go to the bathroom because they don’t want to do so inside their hive.
