WildLife Group
of the SAVA
A few interesting facts about bees:
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Bees found dead at a local farm
a project researching the honeybees’ forage resource
requirements.
Although Cape honeybees are not officially under
threat, they are a crucial part of the ecosystem and
important pollinators of flowering plants, including
many Fynbos species. Honeybees are used to pollinate
about 50 crops across South Africa, including deciduous
fruit and vegetables that grow in the Cape region.
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A honeybee can fly 24km in an hour at a speed
of 15mph. Its wings beat 200 times per second or
12,000 beats per minute.
A beehive in summer can house as many as 50
000 to 80 000 bees.
A single bee would need to collect nectar from
about two million flowers to make one pound of
honey. Collecting this quantity requires the labour
of 556 worker bees, who have to fly more than
once around the world to gather it.
The average worker bee makes about 1/12th of a
teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
Every 3rd mouthful of food has been produced
thanks to bees pollinating crops. Flowering
plants rely on bees for pollination so that they
can produce fruit and seeds. Without bees, there
would be no fruits or vegetables to eat.
A single beehive can make more than 100 pounds
(45 kg) of extra honey. The beekeeper only
harvests the extra honey
Source: https://www.capetownetc.com/news/swarms-of-cape-bees-die/
Congress of the
Wildlife Group
of the SAVA
2019
Wildlife Group of the
South African Veterinary Association
07 - 09 MARCH
Misty Hills Conference Centre, JHB
REGISTER / MORE INFO:
http://bit.ly/2QJ8ESU
12
www.vetlink.co.za
[email protected]
012 346 1590