On Sunday, September 7, 2014, the Young Naturalists Club met at Brookside County Park in Sayville. Children and parents participated in a discussion on Honey Bees, Bumble Bees and Yellow Jackets. A large model of a bumble bee was used to demonstrate the main body parts of a bee. Children were given line drawings of bumble bees, honey bees and yellow jackets and asked to compare and contrast the similarities between the insects. Collected (formerly live) examples of the insects were examined by the children using magnifying glasses.

New words taught to the children were “thorax”, “abdomen” and “stinger”, the later being the most interesting to the audience! The children were amazed to see the fuzz of the bumble bee and the different colored striping on the honey bees and yellow jackets. They found it interesting to learn that bees sting only once and die, while yellow jackets sting multiple times and live. They learned that not all stings come from bees.

A drawing of a man-made bee hive was used to demonstrate how honey is produced, stored and collected. A frame from a honey chamber was passed among the children. They all enjoyed sniffing the smell of honey and nectar on the frame. Pieces of beeswax and honeycomb were found to be soft and waxy to the touch and smelled good, too!

While the children colored the pictures of our buzzing buddies, they were asked, “Who wants to taste some honey?” All hands were vertical and the parents enjoyed a good giggle at the response!

A venture into the butterfly garden revealed sedum and Rose of Sharon covered with all three insects discussed. The children were quick to identify and recognize the differences of each species. It was quite rewarding to see their excitement at finding all three species and their pride in knowing the difference between the species.

The day ended with a hike through the trails looking for yellow jacket nests among the dead trees. A special treat was found when the children spied upon a box turtle enjoying a spot in the sun!

Click to enlarge photos – Photos Courtesy of Janet Gremli

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