Bees Report

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For years we have marveled at the honeybees perfect hexagons, fitting together puzzle-like to create a hive. Ever wondered, “Why Hexagons?” The reason is simple. It’s the same logic we use. Does it work for what i need? Is it feasible? Is it a waste of resources?

Bees are a natural and architectural wonder. How they can create massive amounts of wax and honey the world may never know… or will it? In order to make one ounce of wax a bee must consume eight ounces of honey. That would be very hard to pull off.

Bees have always made hexagon cells for their hive. I don’t mean just any six sided shape, the hexagons bees use are absolutely perfect. Perfect in side lengths, angles and all. Each cell flawlessly symmetrical in every way.[pic 2]

This question of “Why hexagons?” started about two thousand years ago with a man named Marcus Terentius Varro. Varro was an ancient Roman scholar and writer. He suggested an idea in what is known as “The Honeybee Conjecture.” He thought that there was a deeper and better reason than “that’s the way it is.” Turns out, there was.

Turns out there are many shapes that could have been used instead of hexagons... circles, octagons, pentagons, and many more. When looking for a shape that works for a beehive compactness matters. The more compact your structure, the less wax you need to construct the honeycomb. Out of all the shapes only three can lay side by side, on a flat surface, with no gaps, hexagon, square, and triangle.

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Squares could have worked, it would be similar to a brick wall. The only problem is the amount of wax needed to make each cell then make a wax “mortar” to make everything stay in place.