Do Bees Get Thirsty?

Have you ever wondered if bees get thirsty? Or how do bees utilize water? Read on for these answers and more!

Honey bees need to collect water, especially at the end of winter. The honey that they’ve been eating contains very little moisture, and it needs to be diluted before they consume it. They do gain some moisture back by consuming droplets of condensed water from their hives’ inner surfaces. That moisture goes from humidity the bees breathe out to become their drinking water! 

In spring, bees need water to dilute stored honey and also to digest pollen that they stored in cells last season. Honey, pollen, and water consumed in spring is fed to larvae as royal jelly and brood food, to grow the year’s first batch of baby bees. All of the moisture in those new bees’ bodies needs to come from somewhere, so on warm spring days our bees are eager to bring home some extra fresh water.

Bees also need lots of water in summer, especially when the weather is hot. They spread water on the hive’s inner surfaces, and then fan their wings to evaporate the water and cool the hive. 

If you see bees slurping up water from a puddle on a late winter day, enjoy a close look at the specialist water-collecting foragers from your hive. These bees devote themselves to hive hydration instead of finding pollen, nectar, or propolis.

Don’t have time to watch your bees drinking? Learn more from this video where we get up close and personal with some thirsty bees!