> It is so taxing that the muscles in their wings wear out after around 2 weeks.
Wow. I know a lot about bees (and kept bees with my father for several years), but never thought about this and of course didn't know the details of the wear effect on wings.
I believe (but might be wrong as I’ve read a bunch of books this year on bees - it’s my first year beekeeping!) that the source for this info is this book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29499054
The thorax/wings have a "stroke" limit, and are not repairable after the final instar (i.e. once they begin flying, nothing gets repaired). It's not just flightmiles, any wing usage rolls the lifetime odometer (e.g. fanning, flying, dancing).
----
Add Dr. Thomas Seely's "Honeybee Democracy" to your reading list.
Wow. I know a lot about bees (and kept bees with my father for several years), but never thought about this and of course didn't know the details of the wear effect on wings.