Communication is the key to success of any team and honey bees are no exception. These social insects interact using smell, taste, sound, and touch. They communicate about food resources or even about potential nearby danger. These developed senses are quite interesting from antennae, which are the main sensory organ, to their eyes and body hairs. Among the many senses, honey bees also use pheromones and dancing as means of passing on information to the colony. Check out the infographic below on the use of pheromones by the queen and worker bees, including information on the Waggle Dance!

Pollinators, such as bees, not only have complex senses for communication, but are greatly important for agricultural crops. For questions about bees or bee senses contact Sylvia Willis at the UF/IFAS Suwannee County Extension Office, an Equal Opportunity Institution, at (386) 362-2771.

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