buzzing bee ball
The great adversary of the Japanese-bred European honeybee is the Japanese giant hornet. When a hornet scout finds a colony of Japanese-bred European honeybees, it leaves a pheromone trail, which attracts a squad of other hornets. The hornets come and ravage the colony; a typical squad of 15 or so of these hornets will wipe out a colony of bees in a couple of hours. A single hornet is the size of five honeybees: two inches long with a three inch wingspan. It wields a quarter inch stinger, and can kill 40 bees per minute.
Japan has its own species of honeybee. The Japanese honeybee has developed a defense against the Japanese giant hornet. Before a hornet scout can release its pheromone to summon the kill squad, the Japanese bees swarm around it, enclosing it within a tight ball of around 500 soldiers. The bees then begin to hum and vibrate around the hornet all at once. In the center of the ball, the temperature rises to exactly 117 degrees Fahrenheit. Japanese giant hornets can withstand up to, but not including exactly 117 degrees; meanwhile, the highest temperature a Japanese honeybee can withstand is 118 degrees. And so the humming ball of bees is unaffected by the heat, while the giant killer hornet caught in the middle is exterminated. The colony is saved. Such is the process of natural selection.
