The diagram below shows the life cycle of the honey bee. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The diagram illustrates the stages through which a honey bee develops from an egg into an adult insect.

Overall

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, it is clear from the illustration that the cycle consists of five main phases and takes approximately three weeks in total, so a new generation emerges roughly every month and the sequence

then

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repeats itself. The first part of the diagram reveals that the process begins when the queen lays eggs inside the wax cells of the hive. After about 72 hours, each egg hatches into a small larva, which is fed by worker bees for a

further

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five days.

Subsequently

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, the cell is sealed with a wax cap because the young creature needs protection

while

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it changes shape. The second part of the figure shows that the larva transforms into a pupa during the longest period, which lasts around twelve days.

Furthermore

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, the body gradually grows wings and legs within the capped chamber.

Finally

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, the fully formed adult chews its way out of the cell and joins the colony.

In addition

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, the young females are able to produce offspring after a short time, and

thus

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the whole sequence starts again. If any stage were shortened, the insect would not survive.