A honeybee in February

The morning of Sunday, Feb. 4, was pretty cool for a honeybee, with temperatures in the upper 30s. I was surprised to see this bee setting on the cold hood of my truck. It could crawl, but kept falling over and couldn't fly.

There was no wind and the air temperature was rising. I wondered if the honeybee would live or die. I decided to warm him up the easiest and least intrusive way I knew. Cupping my hand on the far side of the bee, I very gently blew my warm breath onto it. The bee recovered quickly, and I allowed it to crawl onto my warm hand. I videoed it as it enjoyed the warmth of my hand for about a minute. Suddenly without notice it flew away.

This bee is known as the western honeybee. It has been naturalized in North America having been introduced here from Europe many years ago. Nature is awesome!