Bee
- “Welcome to the Honeyhive Kingdom! Our queen rules this land.”
- —Bee, Super Mario Galaxy
Bees are insects appearing in a number of Mario and Yoshi games.
History
Super Mario Land
An early appearance of Bees is in world 1-2 of Super Mario Land, bees called Bunbun fly horizontally from right to left, and pause on regular intervals to drop a spear projectile.
Super Mario Land 2
Super Mario Land 2 features an entire bee-themed level, which is the only stage in the game where bee enemies appear. In the Tree Zone world, there is a level that takes place inside a beehive, which is populated by various bees; the common, homing enemy Bee'zerk, the Skeleton Bee, whom is similar to a Bee'zerk but has Dry Bones-like qualities, the Thwomp-like Fat Bee, as well as bee youth; Egghead, Bee Larva and Grubby.
Yoshi's Story
Bees appear in Yoshi's Story, where they fly around their Beehive, not letting Yoshi pass. Yoshi has to walk slowly to prevent the Bees from bothering him. Other larger Bees also appear in Yoshi's Story, as enemies that sting Yoshi if he gets too close.
Super Mario Sunshine
In Super Mario Sunshine, various Beehives can be found in Bianco Hills, Gelato Beach, and Pianta Village. If Mario gets too close to a Beehive or knocks one down, the Bees will swarm him, causing damage if he gets stung. Yoshi can eat these Bees for one Coin each. The last Bee to be eaten always gives up a Blue Coin or 1-Up Mushroom.
Super Mario Galaxy
Another species of Bees appears in Super Mario Galaxy. These Bees are different from the ones encountered in Super Mario Sunshine in that they are the same size as Mario, and are capable of conversing with him. These Bees are also friendly to Mario, and serve the Queen Bee. In addition, the Bee Mushroom makes its first appearance in this game, which allows Mario to transform into Bee Mario. In this form, Mario is able to flutter through the air for a brief period of time, and also stick to and climb Honeycomb Walls.
Super Mario Galaxy 2
Bees reappear in a few galaxies in Super Mario Galaxy 2, serving the same function that they did in Super Mario Galaxy. Occasionally, they will give the player helpful tips on how best to control Mario after he transforms into Bee Mario. After completing the "The Secret Wall Jump" mission in the Honeybloom Galaxy, a Bee appears onboard Starship Mario, and tells the player that they can flutter higher in the air if they collect coins while hovering as Bee Mario.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
In Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Bees would appear as enemies alongside the Beehoss enemy, which had the ability to summon Bees from its honey comb during battle.
Super Mario 3D Land
Bee enemies named Stingbies appear in Super Mario 3D Land and chase Mario.
Mario Kart 7
Stingbies from Super Mario 3D Land appear, along with the unrelated Queen Bee from Super Mario Galaxy in the game Mario Kart 7. Queen Bee appears as an unlockable playable character along with the Stingbies who appear in the battle course Honeybee House, if a player hits one of the bees with their kart they spin out and (in Balloon Battle) lose a balloon.
Characteristics and Traits
The Bees of Mushroom World behave and appear similarly to their Real World counterpart, with very little difference between the two, except certain varieties are shown to have a single pair of wings, unlike the two pairs of wings all Real World Bees share. They often reside in beehives where they will tend to their queen and produce honey, Bees have also been shown to reside within a species of living beehives known as Beehoss with whom they share a symbiotic relationship. Bees, and their numerous subbranches are extremely territorial and will often attack in large numbers, even the more humanoid species are known to be violent.
Bees also have a cosmic counterpart who, unlike their Mushroom World cousins are far more advanced and civilized, having a fully established kingdom which reigns over numerous colonized planets throughout the universe. Much like regular Bees, their duties consist of collecting honey and tending to their noble queen. These Bees are anthropomorphic in appearance, with all of them wearing the same attire which consists of a white ruff around their neck and light blue gloves and shoes. Despite their friendly nature they appear to have rather pointy teeth.
See Also
Trivia
- When a Bee boards the Starship Mario, Lubba says he is allergic to bees.
