Bee

Bee
Sprite of a bee from Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda
First appearance	The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Latest appearance	The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Nintendo Switch)
Variant(s) Deku Hornet Giant Bee Golden Bee

Bees are a real-world insect that commonly appears as an enemy in the The Legend of Zelda series. Like real bees, they typically mind their own business but will aggressively defend their hives with their stingers. They are often shown with many similarities to real life wasps mixed in as well, namely the narrow body structure. Also like real life wasps and bumblebees, they can sting more than once without dying.

History

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, bees most often appear randomly when cutting grass, though occasionally groups will appear from specific trees hit with a dash from the Pegasus Boots. When they appear, they pursue Link while buzzing, occasionally stinging him for low damage. They can be defeated easily, but can also be caught with the Bug-Catching Net and stored in a Magic Bottle. If Link does so, he can either let it back out, at which point it will fight for him by stinging enemies before eventually flying away, or he can sell it to the Street Merchant. In a Fairy Fountain near Lake Hylia, there is also a rare Good Bee (later called "Golden Bee") that fights alongside him longer.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, several bees are shown flying outside their hive in a partially blocked-off portion of Ukuku Prairie, and do not attack Link at all. At one point in the game, Tarin goes to their hive to try and take some honey, and uses a stick given to him by Link to knock it down. He succeeds, but is chased off by the angry swarm of bees, leaving Link alone with the honeycomb.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, groups of seven bees appear in the Lost Woods and usually hide in trees, though one group not in a tree will start flying as soon as they are on the screen. They attack Links that approach the trees, eventually going offscreen if not defeated. They will also go after lit bombs, however.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, bees, called Ordon bees by Hanch, are an uncommon enemy, appearing in Ordon Village, the graveyard, the Sacred Grove, and a few Dig Caverns, always starting on a hive. If Link hits the hive with a projectile, the bees will come after him, which is also the case with Hanch if he is given time to throw a rock at one at an early part of the game. However, if the hawk is used, the bees will not pursue Link.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

In The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, bees are smaller than usual, being 8x7 pixel sprites unlike the models used for most enemies. They appear primarily on Cannon Island. They fly in wide, random loops in front of their hives, and will buzz after Link on sight. They are again very easy to defeat, but if all outside are defeated, another will simply come from the hive, a process that repeats infinitely. The hives cannot be knocked down, as attacking one just prompts an angry swarm to emerge a few seconds later. On other islands, sometimes rolling into trees can cause a hive to fall and disappear while several bees fly out, though not as an organized swarm. On Dee Ess Island, hives of burrowing bees can be found. If they are dug up, three will chase him.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

In The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, bees look like they do in Phantom Hourglass, appearing in the Forest Realm. However, they are much more passive, allowing Link to stand right near their hives without attacking. In this game, attacking the hive will knock it down, prompting an angry swarm to chase him for several seconds or until he jumps into water. The sword can no longer be used to defeat them. A boy in Aboda Village has Link roll into a tree with a beehive as a prank, but apologizes with a treasure.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, bees appear as they do in A Link to the Past. Additionally, a character called the Bee Guy is obsessed with them, requesting Link catch them and bring them to him for rewards. If he gives him a Golden Bee, he will give Link a Bee Badge, which will cause bees to stop being aggressive to Link outright and automatically follow and fight for him. A shop in Lorule sells both bees and Golden Bees.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, bees are uncommon, always found flying around hives filled with Courser Bee Honey. A beehive can be found as early as on the southeast side of the Great Plateau, and are generally found in lightly wooded areas. Notably, multiple can be found near each other on the path between Fort Hateno and Hateno Village. If their hive is disturbed, they will go after the nearest large creature. Bokoblins are terrified of them, and will run in a blind panic if they see a swarm of them, making it so they can be potentially used for ambush. If they are chasing Link, attacking them a few times causes the swarm to flee. They are among the only creatures in the game to not be recognized by the Hyrule Compendium.

Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda

In Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda, bees sometimes appear from grass, after which they will fly around fast and randomly, stinging anything they come in contact with. They can again be caught in bottles and used.

Gallery

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  The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (inside bottle)

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	ハチ Hachi	Bee