What kind of bee is that?!
All "bees" are not created equal. Bees, wasps, and hornets may look alike and belong to the same order of insects called “Hymenoptera,” but they are different insects. How can you tell the difference between a bee, a wasp, and a hornet? Let's take a look!
Bees and wasps took separate evolutionary paths over 100,000,000 years ago. Bees are vegetarians, collecting pollen to feed their young, while wasps and hornets are carnivores, feeding on other insects. The main thing that they do have in common is that only females can sting.
Color:
• Golden Yellow
Source of food:
• Flowers
Sting Frequency:
• Only Stings Once
• Only for Self Defense
Living Conditions:
• Cavity dwellers / Hollow Trees
Hive Quantity:
• Thousands to a colony
Honey Bee
Fat and Fuzzy
Hornet
Shiny, Long, and Thin
Color:
• Darker Colors
Source of food:
• Carnivorous
• Sweets / Garbage
Sting Frequency:
• Stings Multiple Times
• Aggressive
Living Conditions:
• Above Ground
• Paper or mud enclosed nests
• Hanging From Trees
Hive Quantity:
• Hundreds
Considered a ‘superorganism’, these social bees live in hives of thousands.
Hives that are left alone are gentle. They will defend their hive when the hive is threatened.
Pollinating bees are focused on flowers and will not sting unless threatened.
Can produce a surplus of honey as
well as wax.
Beekeeper needed to check on hive.
Active spring, summer, and fall.
Honey Bees
Tireless and Beloved
Leafcutter Bees
Gentle Summer Pollinators
Extremely gentle bee that allows you to get inches from her nesting hole without worry.
Excellent pollinator thanks to her hairy abdomen, which carries lots of pollen.
Stays close to home foraging for pollen and nectar
Does not live in colonies or hives; no need for a beekeeper.
Uses leaves to create her cells, not beeswax.
Does not produce honey or have a queen bee.
Active in the summertime
Gentle enough to touch
Even gentler than the Honey bee and extremely unlikely to sting.
Does not live in colonies or hives; no need for a beekeeper.
Uses mud to create her cells, not beeswax.
Does not produce honey or have a queen bee.
A single mason bee is said to pollinate as well as 120 Honey bees.
Active in the springtime
Nature’s Spring Pollinator
Mason Bees
Bumble
Fuzzy, buzzy, fast
Social bees that live in small hives of under 200 bees.
Hives that are left alone are gentle. They will defend their hive when the hive is threatened.
Bees gathering pollen and nectar won’t sting unless life is threatened.
Beekeeping not needed.
They vibrate flowers to release pollen (“buzz pollination”), which makes them especially effective at pollinating plants in the nightshade family such as: peppers, tomatoes and eggplant.
Active spring, summer, and fall.
