Humble Bee

How does a smoker work?

The smoke masks the honey bee's alarm pheromones, which keeps them calm during an inspection.
It may also trick them into thinking that a forest fire if on the way, so they focus on gathering as much honey as they can in case they need to evacuate.

Whatever the reasoning, a smoker is an invaluable tool for a beekeeper. Remember, though, cool smoke! We like to puff some smoke on our arm before we use it on the hives - if its warm for us, it's too hot for the bees!