Bee bearding
Encyclopedia
Bee bearding is the practice of wearing several hundred thousand honey bees on the face, usually as a sideshow
-type demonstration at agricultural shows. Hive
bees are attracted into position by a queen
in a small cage worn under the chin.
A 2005 attempt to break the record by Irish beekeeper Philip McCabe, who was to wear a full one hundred pounds of bees, failed when only 60 pounds of bees landed on his body. McCabe was using Irish black bees
, which are larger than Italian honey bees
, so fewer bees (around 300,000) would have been required to reach 100 pounds than it took Biancaniello to reach 87 pounds. Bee bearding records are calculated by weight, not number of bees, because of this variation across honey bee strains.
Due to ever-increasing competition to break the record, most advanced attempts at bee bearding now involve bees covering the entire face, torso, back, and arms of the participant in order to provide sufficient surface area for over eighty pounds of bees to land. Nevertheless, the name "bee bearding" is still used.
, China, both beekeepers, married while both were covered in bees.
Sideshow
In America, a sideshow is an extra, secondary production associated with a circus, carnival, fair or other such attraction.- Types of attractions :There are four main types of classic sideshow attractions:...
-type demonstration at agricultural shows. Hive
Beehive
A beehive is a structure in which bees live and raise their young.Beehive may also refer to:Buildings and locations:* Bee Hive, Alabama, a neighborhood in Alabama* Beehive , a wing of the New Zealand Parliament Buildings...
bees are attracted into position by a queen
Queen bee
The term queen bee is typically used to refer to an adult, mated female that lives in a honey bee colony or hive; she is usually the mother of most, if not all, the bees in the hive. The queens are developed from larvae selected by worker bees and specially fed in order to become sexually mature...
in a small cage worn under the chin.
History of bee bearding
Though beekeepers since ancient times have allowed bees to rest on their bodies in order to demonstrate their rapport with the insects, the practice of congregating measurable quantities of bees on the face was initiated by Pyotr Prokopovich, a Russian beekeeper, in the 1830s. The practice spread to various "freak" exhibitions at American carnivals by the end of the nineteenth century.Bee-bearding records
The Guinness Book of Records includes a category for "most pounds of bees worn on the body," which is currently held by American animal trainer Mark Biancaniello. Biancaniello successfully wore 350,000 bees, weighing just over 87 pounds, during a 1998 broadcast of the Guinness World Records: Primetime television show.A 2005 attempt to break the record by Irish beekeeper Philip McCabe, who was to wear a full one hundred pounds of bees, failed when only 60 pounds of bees landed on his body. McCabe was using Irish black bees
European dark bee
The European dark bee was domesticated in modern times, and taken to North America in colonial times. These small, dark-colored honey bees are sometimes called the German black bee, although they occurred originally from Britain to eastern Central Europe.There are three main races,...
, which are larger than Italian honey bees
Italian bee
Apis mellifera ligustica is the Italian bee which is a sub-species of the western honey bee .- Origin :The Italian honey bee is thought to originate from the continental part of Italy, South of the Alps, and North of Sicily...
, so fewer bees (around 300,000) would have been required to reach 100 pounds than it took Biancaniello to reach 87 pounds. Bee bearding records are calculated by weight, not number of bees, because of this variation across honey bee strains.
Due to ever-increasing competition to break the record, most advanced attempts at bee bearding now involve bees covering the entire face, torso, back, and arms of the participant in order to provide sufficient surface area for over eighty pounds of bees to land. Nevertheless, the name "bee bearding" is still used.
In weddings
In 2009, couple Li Wenhua and Yan Hongxia of Ning'anNing'an
Ning’an is a city located approximately 20 km southwest of Mudanjiang, in Heilongjiang province of China. It is located on the Mudanjiang River , which flows north, eventually falling into the Sungari River near Sanxing.Administratively, Ning'an is now a county-level city, and a constituent...
, China, both beekeepers, married while both were covered in bees.
Bee bearding in fictional works
- In the 2008 The SimpsonsThe SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "The Burns and the BeesThe Burns and the Bees"The Burns and the Bees" is the eighth episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 7, 2008. In the episode, after winning the "Austin Celtics" in a game of poker, Mr. Burns builds a new stadium in Springfield in the place where...
", Lisa SimpsonLisa SimpsonLisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
wears a beard of bees to help the local population of bees to flourish. - The episode "Aptitude" on the series The Suite Life of Zack and CodyThe Suite Life of Zack and CodyThe Suite Life of Zack & Cody is an American sitcom created by Danny Kallis and Jim Geoghan. The series premiered on Disney Channel on March 18, 2005 with 4 million viewers, making it the most successful premiere for Disney Channel in 2005. It was one of their first five shows available on the...
shows ZackZack MartinZachary "Zack" Martin is a main character on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and its spin-off The Suite Life on Deck...
looking at a video called "Beard of Bees" on a YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
-like website. - In Bee MovieBee MovieBee Movie is a 2007 computer animated family comedy film starring Jerry Seinfeld, Renée Zellweger, Matthew Broderick, Megan Mullally, John Goodman, Chris Rock, Kathy Bates, and Patrick Warburton. Produced by DreamWorks Animation, it is directed by Simon J...
, as a video clip on a bee news program, a crowd of bees chants "No More Bee Beards! No More Bee Beards!" - In the King of the HillKing of the HillKing of the Hill is an American animated dramedy series created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, that ran from January 12, 1997, to May 6, 2010, on Fox network. It centers on the Hills, a working-class Methodist family in the fictional small town of Arlen, Texas...
episode Mutual of OmabwahMutual of Omabwah"Mutual of Omabwah" is the 179th episode in the Fox animated situation comedy series King of the Hill and was the 8th episode of the 9th season. The episode's title refers to the Mutual of Omaha insurance company.-Plot:...
, Dale GribbleDale GribbleDale Alvin Gribble is a fictional character in the animated series King of the Hill. and is voiced by Johnny Hardwick . He is an exterminator, bounty hunter, smoker, gun fanatic, and paranoid believer of almost all conspiracy theories and urban legends...
wears a bee beard. - In the 2000 Malcolm in the MiddleMalcolm in the MiddleMalcolm in the Middle is an American television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. The series was first broadcast on January 9, 2000, and ended its six-and-a-half-year run on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes...
episode "The Bots and the Bees", Hal wears a beard of bees as a result of his battle robot.
Further reading
- Frank Sennett, "No. 80: Bee Bearded," 101 Stunts for Principals to Inspire Student Achievement (Corwin Press, 2004), 116-117.