Survivor

This worker bee was one of thousands gladly taking the syrup I offered on a warm day last week. If you look closely at her thorax (the middle section of her body), you can see how worn her hairs are. Her tattered hair reveals that she's a winter bee who made it through the coldest months and is now working to usher in a new generation. And it hasn't been an easy winter. She didn't have the luxury of hibernating or hiding away in a pupal state. No, with every degree it dropped, she shivered more to generate the warmth needed to keep her sisters--and her mother--alive. And now, with temperatures barely warm enough to sustain flight, she forages for nectar and pollen to feed the brood that's quickly taking over the comb in her hive. She will die soon, and the progeny she's worked so hard for will carry on. And they'll only live for about 4-6 weeks. This girl, however, has been alive for 6 months. In human terms, this is like some people living to 320 while the rest of us die at 75. Despite these seemingly impossible odds, she has survived just long enough to ensure her family sees another winter. As long as I don't screw it up for them.