I’ll bet you hadn’t put much thought into what happens to bees who die inside the hive. No shame, I hadn’t either. But in the fascinating social world of bees, no stone goes unturned. And so, for at home departures, there are undertaker bees.

A bee drags a dead body out of the hive for disposal.

Not THE “Undertaker”. But the general funeral directors of the bee world. These middle aged bees find their deceased comrades by smell and remove them from the hive. They generally travel 50-100 meters (165-330 feet) away from the hive with the bodies. We’ve seen the process both up close and from a far and I’ll tell you what, you haven’t seen anything until you see an undertaker bee fly away from the hive with a dead bee body and simply drop it to the ground.

Why do they fly so far?!? We don’t know exactly, but scientists have a few guesses. If these undertakers did the bare minimum and just got the stiffs out the door they would most likely invite illness and pests. A skunk, who is a major predator of bees, might see a dead pile and hear the dinner bell...only to find that the buffet table is just a few feet away. Spreading the fallen bees out a distance from the hive assures the safety of the hive at large.

So, it you happen to see a bee tossing a dead bee and flying away, we invite you to raise your glass to them. It’s a tough job...but somebody’s got to do it 🐝🐝

~ Chris, The Boxing Beekeeper