Which of the following caste of honey bee has minimum life span?

Correct option is A

Correct Answer: (a) Worker

Worker bees are the smallest individuals in the honey bee colony and constitute the largest population, usually ranging from 1,500 to 50,000 bees in a colony.

Workers are imperfect females and normally cannot lay eggs.

In rare situations when the colony becomes queenless, some workers start laying eggs called laying workers, but these eggs produce only drones.

The life span of worker bees is about 4 weeks during the active season and 8–10 weeks during the less active season, which is the shortest among all bee castes.

Due to their heavy workload, their life is divided into two functional phases:

First 2–18 days (about three weeks): Indoor or household duties

Cleaning brood cells

Feeding larvae

Acting as nurse bees by secreting royal jelly from hypopharyngeal glands

Comb construction through secretion of beeswax from abdominal wax glands

Remaining life: Outdoor duties

Foraging for nectar, pollen, water, and propolis (bee glue)

Worker bees also defend the hive and maintain hive temperature.

Because of continuous labour, flight activity (1000–1500 m range), and energy expenditure, workers have the minimum lifespan.

Information Booster:

Scientific name of the common honey bee: Apis mellifera.

Honey bee colony consists of three castes: queen, workers, and drones.

Queen bee lifespan: about 2–5 years and she is the only fertile female responsible for egg laying.

Drone lifespan: usually 1–2 months and drones die immediately after mating.

Pollen collected by workers is rich in nitrogen and is essential for brood rearing and development of young bees.

Beeswax production: approximately 10 kg of honey is required to produce 1 kg of wax.

Explanation of Incorrect Options:

Option (b): Helper

There is no caste called “helper” in honey bee colonies.

The recognized castes are queen, worker, and drone.

Hence this option is incorrect.

Option (c): Queen

The queen bee is the largest individual in the colony and has the longest lifespan (2–5 years).

Her primary function is egg laying and maintaining colony population.

Therefore this option is incorrect.

Option (d): Drone

Drones are male bees whose main role is to mate with the queen.

Their lifespan is about 1–2 months, which is longer than worker bees during the active season.

Therefore this option is incorrect.