Since I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by organisms that live and work together. While other kids were on the playground, I would lie belly-down in the dirt, captivated by trails of ants foraging for sugary treasures. It felt like watching a living puzzle, each ant a moving piece in something much bigger than itself. I was trying to figure out how they all knew what to do — and why it worked so well.
So, when I say honeybees are a dream organism for someone like me, I mean it.
Why Bees?
These remarkable insects don’t just live together; they function as a superorganism, where everyone plays a specialized role.
They construct a wax comb with mathematical precision, regulate the hive’s internal temperature and divide labor across tens of thousands of individuals — all without a central command.
At the heart of the hive is the queen. Her sole job is to lay eggs (up to 2,000 a day at her peak). Around her, nurse bees tend to larvae, foragers fly miles to collect nectar and pollen, guards protect the hive entrance and undertaker bees remove the dead. Each bee knows what to do and when to do it.
It’s a society that runs on vibration, scent and instinct. Bees communicate and make group decisions, often more democratically than most human institutions. Watching bees work together is like watching a miracle unfold — one buzz, one wingbeat, one perfectly timed movement at a time.
I didn’t originally set out to become a beekeeper. That changed during a summer course I was teaching for the Missouri Scholars Academy. My class focused on the sounds and vibrations that living organisms make but we often overlook. While walking to a pond on the University of Missouri’s campus, we noticed a hive in a tree. My students and I wondered: what kinds of vibrations might be humming inside?
We suited up, placed recording devices in the hive, and waited. The soundscape was alive — layers of buzzing, tapping and movement that revealed a hidden world. My students were fascinated … so was I.
Shortly after, I was invited to teach a seminar course through the Honors College at Mizzou: “What’s the Buzz About Bees?” From the first hive visit, I was hooked. The course covers everything from bee biology and communication to agriculture and sustainability. I get to teach students not just about how bees live, but why they matter so profoundly.
Why Do Bees Matter?
Bees are essential to life as we know it. Honeybees and native pollinators play an irreplaceable role in ecosystems and agriculture. About one-third of the food we eat relies on pollination. But bees aren’t just agricultural workers; they’re ecological linchpins. Their pollination services help wild plants reproduce, which supports the food webs that countless insects, birds and mammals rely on.
It’s not only honeybees doing this work. North America is home to over 4,000 species of native bees. These species often have close relationships with local ecosystems and are essential to preserving biodiversity.
Trouble in the Hive
In recent decades, both managed honeybee colonies and native bee species have experienced concerning declines. Loss of habitat and floral diversity from development and lawn-dominated landscapes poses a threat. Systemic insecticides and herbicides, parasites and seasonal shifts can throw off the precise timing bees rely on to find food when they need it most and threatens their survival. These pressures accumulate to an environment where bees are constantly working uphill just to stay alive.
This is why education matters. When people understand the biology of bees, the challenges they face and how human actions affect their world, they’re empowered to help.
Bee the Change
You don’t have to become a bee- keeper to support pollinators — you just have to care. Small, intentional actions can create a surprisingly big impact. Start by planting native wildflowers that bloom across the seasons. Even a few pots on an apartment balcony can become a bee buffet. Skip the pesticides and let your yard be a little wild!
Creating a bee-friendly space doesn’t require acres of land — it just requires a willingness to share your space with them. Bees may be small, but their role in our world is monumental. Protecting them means protecting food security, biodiversity and the quiet, buzz- ing harmony of ecosystems that support us all.
From Hive to Table
Beekeeping is where science meets sweetness. It’s biology, agriculture and ecology all wrapped into one—and the reward is something golden, fragrant and deeply local.
For me, sharing this with students is one of the greatest joys. Watching them during a hive visit or during honey extraction, where they “ooh and ahh” as liquid gold drips off the hot knife, reminds me how impactful these creatures can be. It’s not just about bees—it’s about teaching appreciation for the natural world, the beauty of interdependence and the responsibility to care for it.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re lying on the ground watching ants, suiting up to inspect a hive or simply planting flowers in a window box, there’s something deeply humbling about observing organisms that thrive through cooperation. Bees show us what it means to work together, to communicate without words, to build something bigger than any one individual could manage alone.
In a world that often feels rushed and disconnected, bees bring us back to the basics: community, resilience and purpose. They remind me to slow down and tune in. I’ve learned more from standing beside a busy beehive than from most textbooks. And I hope more people get the chance to listen — not just to the buzz, but to what it’s telling us.
