Hommel

Freely buzzing around the meadows, the Hommel is a staple animal in Eshil. This furry flier is no larger than a centimeter in most cases, with exceptionally large ones reaching two centimeters in length. They are harmless to man, woman, and child, as long as they aren't stuck anywhere.

"Daddy look, what is fuzzy thing on the flowers?" A young girl excitedly points at the green and black striped insect.
"That, my dear, is a Hommel."
"What is it doing with the flower?"
"It's making sure that it will bloom again next year, so we always have a colourful city full of blossoms."

Strength in Numbers

Even though the Hommel is a harmless fellow, the people of Eshil know not to mess with it. When it is stuck or it feels very threatened, it will use one of its two main ways to fend off predators. The hommel has a powerful and equally painful bite. They will bite multiple times, injecting a single droplet of venom every time. When this proves ineffective, the Hommel uses its stinger as a last resort. This method releases all the venom at once, but also results in the death of the little creature as they cannot live without their stinger. The body releases a strong pheromone that alerts the other drones of its death. Those alerted will immediately go to the place where the smell is strongest and attack the predator. The sound of hundreds, of not thousands, of hommels thunder through the air as they zoom towards the aggressor to take part in the barrage. It strikes fear in the hearts of anyone passing near such an attack. Most predators don't survive..

Power in Deeds

While most people know not to aggravate, and especially not kill, the Hommel, it is not their strength in numbers that symbolises power. These furry fliers pollenate the flowers and plants in the region. As they feed on the nectar in the flowers, pollen get stuck in their fur and on their legs. While flying to the next one, some of the pollen fall off into the female parts of the plant, fertilising them and ensuring that there will be new growth in the next year. Once arrived at the new blooms, it also pollinates that plant. Depending on the type, these flowers can bear fruit or encourage the growth of (root) vegetables The Hommel brings the consumed nectar back to the hive. Other workers in the hive turn the nectar into honey which is their primary source of food during the colder seasons. Most often, they make too much honey, so people tap the excess honey and use it as a sweetener for cooking. To the people, it is the Hommel that provides them with life because without them, it is impossible to grow food.

Crayon Drawing of the Hommel drawn by Yadrill by ShadowPhoenix

Scientific Name

Bombus Billus

Lifespan

4-7 years

Average Height

50 - 120 millimeter

Average Weight

3 - 10 grams

Average Length

70 - 130 millimeter

Geographic Distribution

Yadrill stumbles up to the board with a few pieces of paper in hand. His knees are shaking as he puts up the papers for everyone to see and turns around. His eyes wander through the classroom with almost two dozen noses are all turned towards him. Yadrill takes a deep breath and begins..

"Hi everyone!" His voice slightly trembling. "My presentation is about the Humble Hommel. The humble hommel is a small insect that flies around making sure that we have fruit and flowers. And, you can easily recognise him!"
The young boy points at his first drawing. "He is fluffy, his back is green with black and he has a blue belly as you can see on my drawing. The hommel is a friendly creature and doesn't hurt you, as long as you don't hurt him. If you hurt him, he bites and it hurts... a lot."
A few kids giggle and whisper.
"The humble hommel may be friendly and harmless alone, but when threatened they come marching upon you a thousand strong! And the buzzing sound is terrifying. I heard it once, and I almost shat my pants."
The giggling becomes outright laughter. Yadrill feels more at ease and runs around pretending to have shitty trousers. Abruptly he stops and salutes like a soldier from the army.
"And that is why our Kingdom of Illtresi has these furry friends on the coat of arms. One man alone may not be strong, but as long as we stand together, we can overcome anything!"

The class roars as the young boy points at his handdrawn coat of arms. Yadrill bows every so slightly to the class as he passes the presentation lesson with flying colours.