Worker Honey Bees Have Different Jobs According to Their Age

All honey bees are exceptional creatures. But, worker honey bees are especially marvelous for many reasons. Worker honey bees are special because they have a different job according to their age.

The female worker honey bees could have been queens as well. The only thing that is stopping them in this is their diet during their development as larvae. Their older sisters are feeding them differently, thus being the only boundary that is isolating them from royalty. So, because of this, instead of living a long life and laying eggs, the worker honey bees are designated to work all life – it lasting only a few weeks.

Worker honey bees’ job depends on their age. This phenomenon is called: age-related division of labor. Beekeepers call this phenomenon that because worker honey bees aren’t born to do only one job during their entire lifetime. On the contrary, in their life-cycle, they progress from one job to another.

Worker honey bees’ job depends on their age:

1-2 days old: have the job to clean the cell, and they start with the one they were born in. They also keep brood warm.
3-5 days old: their job is to feed older larvae
6-11 days old: they have the responsibility to feed the youngest larvae
12-17 days old: they are producing wax, carrying food, building combs and have undertaker duties
18-21 days old: they are protecting the hive entrance and have guard duty
From 22 days to the end of their life (at around 40-45 days): they fly from the hive and collect pollen, nectar, water, etc.
Furthermore, we would like to add that not all workers do all the jobs. Some of them might skip some task as they mature. Also, the labor division system is not fixed. So, the young bees can do older bees’ job and the other way around.