FUN FACT FRIDAY : CREATING A BUZZ ABOUT THE QUEEN BEE
Every Friday I will be launching a honeybee related competition that is free to enter and someone will win a signed copy of Betsie Valentine And The Honeybees every week!
This weeks competition is to draw a picture of the Queen Bee. Simples! But let me first tell you a bit about her.
The queen bee does not rule the hive, she is the mother of the hive.
During the summer months a worker bee lives for about 6 weeks, during the autumn and winter months she lives for about 4 months. The Queen bee can live for up to 5 years.
She lays about 2000 eggs a day.
She has attendants that look after her every need.
The queen bee does not visit flowers or make honey.
She is twice the size of the worker bee.
She communicates with the hive by releasing pheromones. A pheromone is like a chemical messenger.
The queen bee does have a sting and unlike the worker bees, she doesn’t die when she uses it.
A colony of honeybees is loyal to it’s queen. They would never enter another hive with the goods they bring back unless they are starving, then they will attempt to rob another hive but they have to get past the guards first!
The queen bee is fed on a diet of Royal Jelly.
When a queen is born she heralds her own arrival by making a tooting sound. The other queens, still in their cells, then make a gurgling sound which tells the queen where they are. She then finds them and kills them. If she misses one, they will fight until only one survives.
Now you know a little bit more about her…. sit down and draw her and send your entries to meriet@mdthequeenbee.co.uk. Tell me your name and age - this information will not be given without your permission. All entries must be in by Thursday 26th March. The winner will be announced on Friday 27th March and the winning entry will be put up on my blog and Betsie Valentine Face Book Page.
Below is the picture of the Queen Bee from my book - drawn by the oh so talented Tegan Sharrard.
You can copy this or just draw inspiration from it. I’ve also put up some other ideas for you. Let your imaganiation take flight. You can put glitter or jewels on her crown, surround her by flowers, make of her what you will.
I’ve put up some other ideas. Get creative.
Please tell all your friends… I want to see as many pictures of the Queen Bee as I possibly can! I want to look like Jim Carey from Bruce Almighty, covered in post-it-notes only I want to be covered in pictures of the Queen Bee.
Every Friday there will be a new competition so you can learn about the honeybees and have fun at the same time!
