Album: Bees Foraging

Honey bees foraging for nectar or pollen on flowers, or other materials.

Album: Bees on Roses

All flowers here are cultivated roses (Rosa spp, Rosaceae). All photos were taken in the Beijing Botanic Garden, March 2002.

Album: Bees on Peonies

All flowers here are cultivated peonies or tree peonies (Ponia spp, Paeoniaceae). All photos were taken in the Beijing Botanic Garden, March 2002.

Album: Asian Bees (A. cerana)

Apis cerana is the sister species of our bees (A. mellifera). It is the original host of the varroa mites (Varroa jacobsoni, Varroa destructor). Bees are generally smaller and with more striking bands on the abdomen compared to our bees. Most photoes take

Album: Giant Bees (A. dorsata)

Giant honey bees (Apis dorsata, Apis laboriosa) occur only in Asia (China, India, Malasia, Nepal, Thailand). They nest in tall trees or under rocks with a single piece of comb. Bees can forage at night with strong moonlight.

Album: Dwarf Bees

Dwarf honey bees include Apis florea and Apis andreniformis. Both are about 1/4 of European honey bees and nest in the open with a single comb (about 1-1.5 ft long). Florea has the more reddish color while andreniformis is totally black in the abdomen whe

Album: Stingless Bees

No description

Album: Bumble Bees

Bumble bees (Bombus spp, Apidae) are in the same family as honey bees but have an annual cycle. Queens forage in the spring time, but once the first batch of workers emerge, she stays home to be full time mom. Workers are smaller and also sterile like ho

Album: Wasps + bees

Wasps and other bees that people often confuse with honey bees.