How does a bee hive work?

Your question is a bit vague, since beehives do a lot! I'll do my best to hit the high points.

Beehive Functions

• pollination
• honey production
• propolis production
• local pollen production
• royal jelly production
• beeswax production
• food for birds, skunks, ants, Spiders

So how does it "work" when they do all that? It's a long list, so let's itemize it.

Pollination

When honeybees are out flitting from flower to flower, they inadvertently pick up grains of pollen and transport them. The same effect is observed when the bees gather pollen.

Honey Production

Probably the most familiar function of beehives is honey production. See my answer about how bees make honey in the related links section.

Propolis Production

What the heck is propolis? Glad you asked. Propolis is what honeybees use in the wild to keep their hives' components stuck together; it's made from tree resins mixed with pollen, and can be brown, black, white, red, yellow, or green. Propolis is used in traditional medicines.

Local Pollen Production

Of course, honeybees don't actually make pollen; they just gather it from flowers more effectively than humans can. Honeybees use pollen for food (it's a good source of protein, apparently!) Humans use local pollen to relieve Allergies.

Royal Jelly Production

Honeybees produce royal jelly in glands on top of their heads. They feed it to their larvae for the first three days after hatching, but it's called "royal" because it's the only food of queens for their whole lives.

Beeswax Production

Beeswax is produced in the fourth through eighth abdominal sections of workers. They build their entire hives from beeswax, produced one flake at a time, one bee at a time.

Food

I'm sorry to say that bees also serve near the bottom of the food chain as lunch for skunks, birds, ants, and spiders.

I hope that helps you understand a bit more of how beehives work. There's plenty more to learn, so I hope this has piqued your interest. :)