The only cells that replicate (renew) themselves in a honey bee's body are in the digestive tract. When the cells in the rest of the body wear out, the bee dies. The harder the bee works, the faster their body wears out and the sooner they die. Honey bees literally work themselves to death.

Drone (male) Honey Bees have no stinger. Their sole purpose is to mate with a virgin queen and they die shortly after mating. Since drones do not contribute to the work of the hive, worker bees will often force all the drones out of the hive to die during winter or when resources become scarce.

When a worker bee finds honey or nectar on a foraging expedition, they bring a sample back to the hive. The worker tells the other bees where she found it by dancing. The"waggle dance" conveys the location by providing detailed information about the distance and direction in relation to the sun, but doesn't seem to have a way to convey altitude. She then offers the other workers the sample she has brought back. If the workers in the hive decide they want more, additional workers are sent to the location specified in the dance.

All of the worker bees in a honey bee hive are female. They have stingers to defend the hive. The stinger detaches and stays behind when they sting. Once they sting, they die soon after. The Queen has a stinger, but she will not jeopardize the survival of the hive by sacrificing herself to defend it.

The Queen is the only female in the hive who has mated and is capable of fertilizing the eggs she lays. However, it is the workers who make the majority of the hive decisions, not the Queen. Her major roles are to lay eggs to create new generations of workers for the hive and to produce the pheremones which hold the hive together as a cohesive unit.

The average honey bee produces approximately 1/2 teaspoon of honey over the course of it's entire life.