The question
The diagram below shows the life cycle of the worker honeybee.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
The queen lays one egg in each wax cell of the honeycomb — up to 1,500 eggs a day
The egg stands upright in the cell and hatches on day 3
Worker bees feed the white, legless larva royal jelly, then pollen and honey; it grows rapidly
Workers seal the cell with a wax cap; the larva spins a cocoon
Legs, wings and eyes develop and the body darkens
The adult bee chews through the wax cap and leaves the cell
Cleans cells, feeds larvae, builds comb and guards the hive
Collects nectar, pollen and water from flowers until it dies
The queen lays one egg in each wax cell of the honeycomb — up to 1,500 eggs a day
The egg stands upright in the cell and hatches on day 3
Worker bees feed the white, legless larva royal jelly, then pollen and honey; it grows rapidly
Workers seal the cell with a wax cap; the larva spins a cocoon
Legs, wings and eyes develop and the body darkens
The adult bee chews through the wax cap and leaves the cell
Cleans cells, feeds larvae, builds comb and guards the hive
Collects nectar, pollen and water from flowers until it dies
Key features to report
- Overview: there are eight stages in two main phases: 21 days of development inside a sealed wax cell, followed by an adult working life of about six weeks, first inside and then outside the hive.
- The queen lays one egg in each cell (up to 1,500 a day), and the egg hatches after three days.
- The larva is fed royal jelly and then pollen and honey; the cell is capped with wax on day 9 and the larva spins a cocoon.
- The pupa develops legs, wings and eyes, and the adult emerges on day 21.
- The adult works as a house bee (cleaning cells, feeding larvae, building comb) for about three weeks, then as a forager collecting nectar, pollen and water.
Model answer
197 words · written by Abroadway to show band 9 features (not an official IELTS sample)
The diagram illustrates the stages in the life of a worker honeybee, from egg-laying to the end of its working life.
Overall, the life cycle consists of eight stages, which fall into two main phases: 21 days of development inside a sealed wax cell, followed by an adult life of around six weeks, during which the bee works first inside the hive and later outside it.
The cycle begins when the queen lays a single egg in each cell of the honeycomb, producing up to 1,500 eggs a day. After three days, the egg hatches into a white, legless larva, which worker bees feed with royal jelly and later pollen and honey. On the ninth day, the cell is capped with wax and the larva spins a cocoon, becoming a pupa, which develops legs, wings and eyes over the next twelve days.
On day 21, the fully formed adult chews its way out of the cell. For approximately three weeks, it acts as a house bee, cleaning cells, feeding larvae and building comb. Finally, it becomes a forager, collecting nectar, pollen and water until it dies, while the queen continues to lay eggs and the cycle repeats.
Useful language
- life cycle
- queen
- larva
- pupa
- royal jelly
- capped
- hatches
- forager
- stages
Step-by-step method in the free lesson Process diagrams: sequencing and the passive.
Write your own report and get a band estimate
Free, no account needed. Aim for 20 minutes and at least 150 words.