Bees perform the pollination necessary for a significant portion of the world’s flowering plants and food crops. Their drive to forage is governed by nutritional needs and specialized sensory mechanisms. This exploration defines the specific attractants, ranging from the natural diet found in flowers to the high-sugar sources encountered in human environments.
The Primary Natural Diet: Nectar and Pollen
Bees rely on a two-part diet harvested directly from flowering plants, with each component serving a distinct nutritional purpose. Nectar is the primary source of carbohydrates, a sugary liquid produced by flowers to attract pollinators. It provides the immediate energy required for flight and hive activities.
Worker bees transport nectar back to the hive, where it is processed into honey, the colony’s long-term energy reserve. This carbohydrate fuel is necessary for the bee’s metabolism, supporting tasks like regulating the hive’s temperature. Without this energy source, bees can perish quickly.
Pollen supplies the necessary protein, fats, vitamins, and minerals required for growth and development. This protein is crucial for feeding developing larvae. Nurse bees consume pollen, mixing it with nectar and saliva to create “bee bread,” a nutrient-rich food fed to the young. The nutritional content of pollen varies widely between plant species, influencing which flowers bees prioritize.
Sensory Cues: How Bees Locate Food
Bees use a sophisticated suite of sensory tools to locate and assess food quality, combining sight, scent, and electrical detection. Bees perceive the world differently than humans, with their color spectrum extending into the ultraviolet (UV) range. Many flowers display UV patterns, often invisible to the human eye, which act as “nectar guides” directing the bee toward the reward.
Bees are particularly drawn to colors such as blue, purple, and yellow, which signal the presence of nectar and pollen. The specific shape and structural symmetry of a flower also serve as visual cues indicating a reliable food source. This visual assessment allows for rapid identification of profitable foraging sites.
Scent is also crucial, as flowers release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that bees detect to confirm the presence and quality of a reward. These chemical aromas can travel long distances, allowing bees to home in on flowers. A strong scent combined with a distinct visual pattern improves the bee’s ability to learn and remember food locations.
A recently understood cue is the weak electric field surrounding flowers. As a bee flies, friction gives it a positive electrical charge, while flowers possess a negative charge. Bees can detect and discriminate between these fields. This electrical signal is altered when a charged bee lands, providing a rapid signal to subsequent visitors that the flower has been recently depleted of nectar.
Accidental Attractants: Human Foods and Sweet Substances
Bees sometimes investigate human food sources, driven by their need for simple sugars. Substances like soft drinks, fruit juices, and syrups provide high concentrations of accessible carbohydrates. These liquids mimic the sugary composition of nectar and satisfy the bee’s immediate need for energy.
Overripe or cut fruit, which releases strong, sweet aromas, is also a powerful attractant. While these accidental sources offer a quick energy boost, they are nutritionally incomplete for the colony. They lack the protein, fat, and vitamin content found in pollen necessary for rearing young and maintaining colony health.
The attraction is not limited to food items; personal care products can also draw attention. Lotions, perfumes, and hair products with overly sweet or floral fragrances can be mistaken for the scent of a rewarding flower. Foraging bees are opportunistic and will exploit any readily available source of sugar water or moisture, especially when natural floral resources are scarce.