Communication in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)

Honeybees are social creatures that live in colonies. They use chemical signals to communicate with each other and perform bee dances. Pheromones are chemicals produced by various glands in the honeybee's body and released into the environment. Honeybees use pheromones to locate their hive, find food sources, care for and feed their larvae, increase the colony's population, ensure peaceful coexistence among bee colonies within the hive, facilitate the queen bee's mating, keep swarming bees together, form clusters within the hive, and defend the hive. Also, honeybees use bee dances to inform colony members of the location of food sources. These dances are the “Circular Dance,” used when the nectar source is less than 100 meters from the hive, and the “Waggle Dance,” performed when the nectar source is more than 100 meters from the hive. This allows bees to reach food sources kilometers away from their hives without expending excessive time and energy. While the location of the food source cannot be fully communicated to the colony individuals in the circular dance, in the Tail Wagging Dance, the location of the food source, its location, and even what the food source is are reported.