There are over 20,000 different types of bees, most of which are solitary, do not produce honey, and do not live in hives. These types of bees are about half an inch long and there are about 140 species in North America.
There are over 20,000 species of bee. However, merely a small number predominate. The great number of bee species is enabled by the fact that their small size and extended periods of dormancy allow them to fulfill numerous ecological niches all over the world. Most bees are native to the Old World.
Over 4,000 native bee species can be found in the United States, as well as hundreds of non-native species such as honey bees. Unlike bees, which are sociable and live in large colonies, 90% of native bee species found around the world are solitary.
Many Bee Species are Not Social
Fewer than 8% of bees are considered “social” and live with other members of the same species. Social species include more familiar species such as honeybees and bumblebees, but globally they account for only 6% of bee species diversity and are limited to just two families (Apiidae and Halidae). Sweat bee species vary in solitary, social, semi-social or eusocial behavior, making it one of the most diverse groups in terms of social behavior.
Bumblebees are the best known native social bees, although there are over 200 species of sweat bees that sometimes nest together. Sometimes several females build their nest chambers close together, forming a random social colony, but of course nothing beats more than 10,000 individuals in a bee hive.
With the notable exception of bumblebees, most of our native bees are solitary, meaning that the females do not live in a hive or colony but build solitary nest chambers in the ground or in a hollow stem or cavity. Some species, such as the eastern carpenter bee and closely related small carpenter bees (usually Ceratina), may be solitary or exhibit co-breeding, in which a group of females has a single nest entry and a weak or short social structure.
Only one is large and also contains many species that do not produce honey, such as digger bees, carpenter bees, and oil gatherers. Out of seven families, only one contains honey bees, Apidae. Of these, only 8 bee species produce honey, and none of them are native to the United States, although we have another 4,000 native bee species. Keep in mind that there are many types of bees, and honey bees represent only a small fraction of the approximately 20,000 known species of bees.
Hundreds of Bee Species Live Nearby
While many of us are familiar with the honey bee and one or two species of bumblebee, there are actually over 200 hundred species of bees in the UK and the wider British Isles (and only about 20,000 species worldwide). While most people think of the common honey bee when they think of bees or pollinators, bees are only a tiny fraction of the many thousands of bee species found in the world.
Although the word “bee” evokes the honey bee Apis mellifera in most people, over 20,000 species of bees have been described worldwide. More than 20,000 species of bees are known today, and among the more than 20 there is a wide variety of sizes, appearances, life cycles and nesting habits.
Of course, some types of bees are more common than others, depending on where you live and what kind of plants you grow. Of all the pollinators found in gardens, farmland, and natural areas, bees are the most common and most effective. While the average bee can visit more than 2,000 flowers per day, bees greatly increase the chances of a plant producing fruit or vegetables. Studies have shown that native bees such as cucurbit bees, garden bees and blueberry bees can carry most of the pollination of some plants and foods.
The Importance of European Bees
This species of bee is used commercially to pollinate many commercial crops and is also bred for honey in beekeeping. This species, also called the European bee, is the most common species in the world and, due to its honey production capabilities, is one of the species preferred by beekeepers for both honey production and pollination. Melipona is almost the size of a European bee, and the family can produce about six liters of honey per year.
The black pygmy bee is used by humans to produce some commercial products such as honey, wax, royal jelly, and bee venom.
Within the same species of bees, there are different types of bees called races such as Italian bees and Carniola bees. It is important to distinguish between different types of bees. Honeybees are probably the best-known insect pollinators, but there are many species that can act as pollinators, including butterflies, moths, wasps, beetles, and flies. Most of them belong to a single bee colony and are often mistaken for other insects such as wasps and bumblebees, hoverflies and bee flies.
Apidae is the largest family of bees, with at least 5,700 species, and includes the yard bees that people are most familiar with, such as honey bees, bumblebees, and carpenter bees. In contrast, honey bees are the only fully social bee species in Pennsylvania, living in perennial colonies of tens of thousands with workers (non-reproductive females), drones (males), and queens (reproductive females) that differ from each other.
Most people are able to recognize the non-native, ubiquitous European honey bees, but many don’t know about the 1,600 native bee species that can be found in California, many of them in our California gardens. The diversity of bee species is also important, as recent studies show that wild bees provide a large proportion of the pollination services previously attributed to domestic honey bees (Apis mellifera).
