Bee Aware

Honey bees (Apis mellifera) and other bee species such as bumblebees, orchard mason bees, and leafcutter bees are very important to the pollination of flowers and crops, and can be found foraging on numerous plants in the spring through late summer and early fall. In addition to bees, butterflies, moths, flies, hummingbirds, and some bats can be important pollinators.

Approximately 3,500 species of bees live in North America. Bees are valuable pollinators of 95 crops grown in the United States. Crops pollinated by bees have a farm value of well over $20 billion annually in the U.S. Honey bee colonies also contribute to our agricultural economy by producing over $200 million of honey annually.