What the Bee Sees
Listen to Jacqueline ...
Tell me, humble bumblebee,
about the things I cannot see.
You’re so little, I’m so tall.
Do we see the same at all?
Gosh, no! These five eyes on my head
see many shades, but never red.
A flower that looks pure white to you,
to me is more a purply-blue.
‘Five eyes?!’ you say. Yes, that’s a fact.
Three ocelli, to be exact,
they’re on my forehead, very small,
my sunlight navigation tool.
Then bulging out, quite huge in size,
two pixelated compound eyes,
detecting danger all around,
both in the air and on the ground.
My ocelli see UV light
and patterns, hidden from your sight.
On every petal, sharp and clear,
they point the way, shout “Nectar’s HERE!”
My compound eyes contain a mere
Six THOUSAND ommatidia.
Each one’s a mini lens. Bees see
mosaic flowers, mosaic trees.
So whilst I’m just a humble bee,
please don’t forget how much I see,
and though you’re big and I’m so small,
remember, you can’t see it all!
about the things I cannot see.
You’re so little, I’m so tall.
Do we see the same at all?
Gosh, no! These five eyes on my head
see many shades, but never red.
A flower that looks pure white to you,
to me is more a purply-blue.
‘Five eyes?!’ you say. Yes, that’s a fact.
Three ocelli, to be exact,
they’re on my forehead, very small,
my sunlight navigation tool.
Then bulging out, quite huge in size,
two pixelated compound eyes,
detecting danger all around,
both in the air and on the ground.
My ocelli see UV light
and patterns, hidden from your sight.
On every petal, sharp and clear,
they point the way, shout “Nectar’s HERE!”
My compound eyes contain a mere
Six THOUSAND ommatidia.
Each one’s a mini lens. Bees see
mosaic flowers, mosaic trees.
So whilst I’m just a humble bee,
please don’t forget how much I see,
and though you’re big and I’m so small,
remember, you can’t see it all!
What we now call a bumblebee was once known as a humblebee. This was not because they were humble little creatures working hard to collect nectar and pollen but because, as they fly, they hum!
This poem is copyright (©) Jacqueline Shirtliff 2026
About the Writer
Jacqueline Shirtliff
Jacqueline is a poet and primary school teacher on the Isle of Man. One of her favourite things is helping children to love poetry and reading and encouraging them to be writers themselves. She lives in a rose-covered cottage near the sea and enjoys gardening, crochet, and playing the tuba and harp, but not all at the same time! You can read some of her other poems in The Caterpillar, Tyger Tyger, Northern Gravy, The Toy, and Little Thoughts Press.
