What Is A Beehive? – Where Bees Live
This post may contain affiliate links – read our full disclosure
Table of Contents
A Beehive is a Home for Honey Bees
What is a beehive? It is the place a honey bee colony calls home. The bee family may occupy a man-made wooden box or an empty hollow log. The ability of bees to find new places to build their hives is truly fascinating. If conditions change or the colony outgrows their current location, they will search out a new hive to call home. Then, before you know it – off they go.
Specific images may come to mind when you think of a beehive? But, what is a beehive exactly? In the largest definition, beehives are either natural or domestic.
In the wild, honey bees create natural hives wherever they desire. And, even though we will never truly domesticate bees – we do build hives for them.
For most people, the term beehive refers to the actual box that beekeepers provide for bees. Yet often, when we say beehive we are talking about not only the physical location-but the bee family that lives inside too!
Bees that Live in Beehives
Bees from the subgenus “apis”, such as our honey bees, live in beehives. In some parts of the world, there are bee species that build open nests.
However, in most regions – the honey bee nest will be inside an enclosed cavity. Here, the bees carry on all the life sustaining activities of honey bee life.
A simple view from the outside of a beehive gives no indication of the magic happening inside.
In fact, during Winter the hive may seem dead – but the bees are snuggled inside.
With enough stored food and good health – the colony can hunker down and live out the cold months until Spring arrives again.
Where Do You Find Beehives?
In nature, you will often find honey bees that have created a beehive in a hollow tree. When a colony lives in a tree, beekeepers in my region of the country call it a bee tree and if the colony and part of the tree is harvested a -“bee gum”.
A tree beehive may contain a colony of bees for years and years. Of course this was before the influx of a honey bee pest known as Varroa Mites. Mites wiped out most of the feral bee population several years ago.
While it is not impossible, it is uncommon to find honey bees nesting in the ground. Ground dwelling bees often end up being Yellow Jacket Wasps– not bees.
Also, not every type of bee that lives in a tree is a beehive. Hornets nests are often confused as honey bee hives. They are not – do not try to collect any honey from a hornet nest!
Hornets build a new nest each year. They do not continuously live in the nest like a honey bee colony.
Beehives in Unfortunate Places
But, bees don’t have to live in trees. They may move into an empty wood or plastic box. The inside of an unused gas grill can be home to a colony of honey bees.
Sometimes bees move into structures that conflict with the desires of humans.
Homeowners do not like to find a honey bee hive inside the walls of their home. (A good reason to caulk any openings to the outside.)
Bee Homes Made by Beekeepers
Beyond natural hive locations, there is another common type of bee home. This is a man-made box used by beekeepers. There are several different types of beehives.
The term apiary is used to describe a group of hives in one location. A beekeeper may have a couple of hives or many in one central location.
Having the hives closer together makes for more efficient bee management. However, grouping many hives together increases competition for foraging. We don’t want to place too many colonies in one location.
Most Popular Standard Beehive Type
Modern beekeepers use several styles of beehives. But, the most common is the Langstroth hive developed in 1851. This hive design features honeycomb held in a wooden frame.
Using the principle of bee space, this hive design revolutionized beekeeping. Bee space (commonly referred to as 3/8”) is the space that bees will naturally leave between sheets of honeycomb.
They also leave this space around the edges of combs as a dead-air space for insulation. The removable frames of a Langstroth hive facilitate hive inspections.
The honey bee queen lays eggs in the bottom boxes of the hive. This is the brood nest area. Honey and pollen is stored in cells near the brood nest. This make it easier for nurse bees to feed the bee brood.
The top boxes of a hive stack may contain excess honey for the beekeeper. These boxes used by beekeepers are called supers.
The honey harvested should not rob the bees of their Winter food. Only extra honey beyond what the bees need should be taken.
What Is a Beehive Made Of?
A honey bee colony that lives in a hollow tree or a man-made hive is actual 2 components.
The first is the outside physical structure that encloses the nest. Inside the physical structure, we find the true heart of the beehive.
Honeycomb made from beeswax is the second component of a hive. Sheets of honeycomb containing thousands of individual wax cells form the backbone of the hive.
In these hexagon cells, bees raise young bees and store food for Winter. The colony could not survive without the honeycomb sheets.
Inside the Bee Hive
Rather than the external surface, which could be a tree, wooden box etc, let’s consider the inside of a hive.
A beehive is a family of bees and the resources they need for survival. The interior of the hive area is coated with sticky bee propolis.
Propolis is a mixture of plant resins, beeswax and saliva that has anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. It is used to seal cracks and contributes to beehive health.
An excess of propolis makes hive inspections more difficult for beekeepers. The boxes and frames will seem to be glued together. However, it is thought that more propolis inside may mean healthier bees.
Honey bees make beeswax from wax glands on the underside of their abdomen. Building comb requires a lot of effort by the honey bees.
Inside wax cells, bees make and store honey to be used over Winter. Also, pollen is converted to bee bread and stored until it is needed by the colony. Wax cells are also used to hold developing babies called “brood”.
FAQs About Beehives
No. Beehives are not normally dangerous. Honey bees are one of the most accommodating bees in the insect world.
However, they do live in large colonies of over 40,000 bees during the Summer. They deserve respect.
Colony temperament will change over the season too. A queen that passes on defensive behavior to her offspring, night time predators irritating the colony or bad foraging conditions can turn the mood nasty.
For this reason, it is important to find the very best place to put your beehives. Away from human traffic, walkways or play areas is the best plan.
Sometimes, you may find a hive of wild bees living in a tree or building.
Honey bees are not normally aggressive when left alone. Leave them alone. Do not approach the front of the entrance or get too close.
Yes, you can often keep bees in neighborhoods. The first step is to check your local laws and regulations.
Many locals allow beehives with some restrictions such as a minimum number of hives or having to own a certain amount of property.
Being a good beekeeping neighbor will go a long way towards the acceptance of your beehive.
In addition to good placement, don’t work your bees on the same afternoon your neighbor is having an outside birthday party.
Is there a neighborhood pool? Provide a water source for your bees before they arrive and decide they want to visit the pool. Common sense goes a long way.
Honey bees are a bit different than most other types of bees. Most bees do not over winter as a colony.
For these bees, a mated queen hibernates in leaves, bark and forest debris. Next Spring, she emerges and starts a new nest. That is why you do not see large nest early in the season.
Honey bees however are social insects. The whole bee family over-winters inside the colony. Bees survive winter by clustering together for warmth and eating honey stored for this purpose.
So, a beehive may look empty but hopefully there is a cluster of bees inside – waiting for Spring.
They can be. Beekeeping is a wonderful hobby. However, if you are looking for an easy way to make money, I would look elsewhere.
Honey bee colonies are prone to failure from many stresses. If you are seeking to start a beekeeping business, I suggest you begin slow and grow your number of hives as you learn.
Must you have a location with full Sun for a hive? No. Beekeepers who live in regions where the Small Hive Beetle is found should avoid full shade. Beetles reproduce more easily in moist, shady soil.
If you live in one of the hotter regions, some afternoon shade may be very beneficial to your honey bee colony. Placing your beehive in shade can help them.
They are able to cool the hive but a little shade from extreme heat can help them keep the brood nest at the correct temperature.
If you live in a region with bears, you should be concerned about your bees. Many beekeepers share land with bear families and have no problems.
The installation of a good electric fence for bear control is the first step to harmonious cohabitation.
It is much easier to prevent bear problems that to stop them once started. It is unlikely that a beehive will call a bear in from a great distance.
However, bears roam and you may have one passing through who knows how good bees taste!
Honey bees contribute a great deal to our agricultural system by providing pollination of crops. Their large colonies are easily moved from one location to another.
However, honey bees have not proven themselves to be the best pollinators inside greenhouses. They just want out! Bumble Bees are a better option for large greenhouse pollination.
Oh my, as wonderful as honey bees are, they sometimes established homes in undesirable locations. A beehive in your home is not good for you or the bees.
Pest control companies will often kill the colony but I would only suggest that as a last resort.
If you find a beehive that needs removal, contact a local beekeepers association. Each state has them and you can contact your state agricultural department if you don’t know who else to contact.
If you have a colony in between the walls of your home, be prepared to pay for bee removal. It is a big job to removed siding etc, and then fix it back to the homeowner’s satisfaction.
Yes, they smell good. Seriously though, beehives do not smell bad unless the bees are dealing with disease. If your beehive smells bad, it is time for a good inspection to determine the cause.
Not at all, your beehives do not have to be white. They can be painted any color. In many regions, we do recommend light colors to help protect the colony from over-heating.
It sure can and that is a wonderful thing. It is not uncommon for a beekeeper to have a bee swarm move into an empty bee box! Can you say – FREE BEES !
Yes, beehives are thought of as living things. Because of the social structure of a honey bee family, a colony is consider a “super-organism.
Inside the hive, individual bees go about their daily tasks – however, the hive as a whole organism can grow and prosper or become weak and die.
The combined efforts of the social insect known as honey bees make this possible.
Final Thoughts on the Beehive
The beehive is a dwelling place for bees and everything located inside. It may be the inside of an tree or a man-made box.
Beehives are where the magic of the bee world shows off its best efforts. This industrious little insect fights to survive against all odds in the big wide world.
To learn more about honey bees, be sure to read – Amazing Honey Bee Facts.
Beekeeper Charlotte
