This high quality film follows a colony of European Apis mellifera through a year within a frame hive in the UK. Close-up footage of the life of the queen, workers and drones begins with young adults emerging weak and hungry to be pushed and trampled by others in the colony before they are washed and fed by nurse bees. Communication within the nest, foraging for food, water and propolis, defence against wasps, the ravages caused by Varroa, wax production, swarming, and how the colony interact to survive the cold in winter are all documented.
DVD2009 Duration 43 minutes