Elementary Ecosystem Investigation: Bee Habitat

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​​Investigate Bees and Their Habitat
 
Bee on Clover Flower
Wikimedia - Radu Privantu
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There are over 20,000 species, or types, of bees in the world. 4,000 of these species can be found in the United States.

Bees play an important role in our ecosystems, and your outdoor classroom can help support them by providing habitat including food, water, shelter, and a place to raise their young.


 
Click on the topics below to learn more!
         
Characteristics and Types Life Cycle Ecological Role Habitat Needs Interesting Facts
 
 
Characteristics and Types
     
Bee Classification:  
Bees are insects and share traits with other members of the insect group:
  • 3 body segments (head, thorax, and abdomen)
  • 3 pairs of legs
  • 2 pairs of wings
  • Protected by an exoskeleton (a hard covering that provides protection and support and that can be found on some animals that do not have a backbone)
  • Antennae on the head for sensing or smelling
  • Compound eyes - contains many lenses that combine to form an image. Usually allows the animal to see a wide view.
     
Insects are further grouped based on physical traits. Bees,wasps, and ants are classified together based on their see-through wings. Insects within this group also have:
  • 2 pairs of thin wings
  • Front and hind wings are held together with a tiny hook
  • Females have a long, hollow tube on the rear end used for laying eggs. This tube is specialized for stinging or piercing.
Bumblebee
Dreamstime
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Differences between bees and wasps:
Although bees and wasps are classified in a group together, there are ways to tell them apart from one another.
  • Body shape
    • Bees have a more hour glass shaped body that is more round.
    • Wasps have a long, skinny body with a more narrow waist.
  • Body hair
    • Bees are usually covered in hairs, appearing fuzzy.
    • Wasps have a shiny body, sometimes with a few hairs.
  • Back legs
    • Bees have short, broad hind legs, often used for carrying pollen.
    • Wasps have long, skinny hind legs.
  • Wings
    • The wings on a bee are more short and round in shape and touch or overlap when the bee is at rest.
    • The wings on a wasp are long and slender and lay in line with the wasp's body when the wasp is at rest.
  • Diet
    • Bees feed on pollen and can be found collecting pollen from flowering plants.
    • Wasps are predators and will hunt for insects and spiders. They do visit flowers for nectar or to hunt for prey.
   
Eastern Bumble Bee
Wikimedia - Ryan Hodnett
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Black and Yellow Mud Dauber
Flickr - Judy Gallagher
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There are around 4,000 species (types) of bees that can be found in North America. Some of them are easy to see and recognize while many of them live alone and are smaller than a
grain of rice.
 
Common Types of Bees:
 
Bumble Carpenter Honey
American Bumble Bee
Wikimedia - Judy Gallagher
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Carpenter Bee
Wikimedia - Daniel Schwen
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Honey Bee
flickr - Hans Hillewaert
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  • Large body
  • Up to 1 inch in length
  • Covered in yellow hairs on body
  • Carry pollen on hind legs
  • Social - live in colonies with a queen, workers, and male drones
  • Large body
  • Up to 1 inch in length
  • Do not have hairs on the abdomen (back most body segment)
  • Bag segment is shiny and black
  • Carry pollen on hind legs
  • Do not live in colonies (solitary)
  • Small body
  • 1/2 to 3/4 inch in length
  • Brown with black and yellow bands on body
  • Carry pollen on hind legs
  • Build hives where they store honey and pollen
  • Social - live in colonies with a queen, workers, and male drones
    Check out this fun coloring page and fact sheet about Honey Bees from Kidgardening.org and Little Seeds!
     
Leafcutter Mason Miner
Leafcutter Bee
Dreamstime
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Mason Bee
Dreamstime
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Mining Bee
Dreamstime
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  • Small body
  • Less than 1 inch in length
  • Mostly black with yellow stripes on the back segment
  • Carry pollen underneath the back segment
  • Solitary (do not live in colonies)
  • Small body
  • Less than 1 inch in length
  • Shiny green or blueish black in color
  • Carry pollen underneath the back segment
  • Solitary (do not live in colonies)
  • Will build nests near other mason bees
  • Small body
  • Around 1/2 inch in length
  • Pale yellow hairs on the middle section and brown hairs on back section and legs
  • Carry pollen on hind legs
  • Solitary (do not live in colonies)
  • Will build nests near other miner bees
  Check out this fun coloring page and fact sheet about Mason Bees from Kidgardening.org and Little Seeds!  
 
 
 
Life Cycle
     
Bees go through a complete metamorphosis (a series of physical changes as an animal develops) with an egg, larva, pupa, and adult stage. 
     
Egg:   Females lay eggs in the spring in individual compartments in their nest. They provide  nectar, pollen, and saliva near the egg.
Bee Life Cycle
Dreamstime
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Larva:  Grublike larvae hatch from the eggs and begin feeding on the nectar, pollen, and saliva. 
   
Pupa:  The young enter an inactive stage called a pupa.
     
Adult:  The final stage is the adult stage. Females are usually the first to emerge, followed by the males. Females search for nectar and pollen. In species that live in colonies, the females that emerge continue providing nectar and pollen for the young. Male bees do not live as long as female bees.

In many species of bees, the adult females will overwinter (go into a state of low activity level to save energy, similar to hibernation) and emerge in the spring to collect pollen and lay eggs. In social species, the queen will overwinter.
     


 


 
Ecological Role
   
Bees are pollinators:
  • Bees pollinate native flowering plants
  • Flowers produce pollen (a yellow powder-like substance) that bees use for nutrients and protein
  • When a bee visits a flower, pollen becomes trapped in the hairs on the body
  • As a bee moves from flower to flower, pollen on that bee's body is transferred among the flowers
To learn more about pollination, visit the Alabama Wildlife Federation's Pollinators and their Habitats webpage!
Bee Covered in Pollen
Dreamstime
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Bees are important in food production:
  • Around 75% of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts grown in the United States depend on bee pollination
Southern Blueberry Bee on Blueberry Flower
Dreamstime
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Buzz pollination:
  • Some bees, including bumble bees, can do a special type of pollination called buzz pollination
  • In buzz pollination, large bees vibrate their wings quickly while visiting a flower
  • The vibration causes pollen to release from that flower that would not have released if the flower was not shaken
  • Some plants like tomatoes, eggplants, pumpkins, cranberries, and blueberries require this type of pollination
  • Honey bees cannot perform buzz pollination
   
Some native bee species are declining in number due loss of habitat and pesticide use.  It is important to provide habitats for them because they play an important role in their ecosystem and help pollinate some of our food sources.
   
The honey bee is not native to the United States. The honey bee is originally from Europe, Africa, and western Asia. They were introduced to North America in the 1600's as a source of wax, sugar, and honey.

Although honey bees are important pollinators of many of the crops in the United States, native bee species are often better at pollinating our native plants.  Honey bees can also outcompete or take away pollen from native bee species in some habitats.
 
   
 


 
Habitat Needs
   
Bees require a habitat that provides food, water, shelter, and a place to raise their young.
   
Food:  
  • Bees feed on pollen and nectar provided by plants
  • Pollen is high in protein and nutrients
  • Nectar provides the bee with sugars
  • Bees use nectar and pollen to feed their young
 
Click on the flowers to see the plant species commonly found in outdoor classroom pollinator gardens!
 
Bee Feeding on Dandelion Pollen
flickr - nutmeg66
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Water:  
  • Bees require a source of freshwater
  • They often drink from puddles on the ground, shallow bird baths, or other sources of shallow water
Shallow Mud Puddle
flickr - daveynin
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Shelter:
  • Bees build nests where they raise their young
  • To escape harsh weather or to avoid threats, bees may take shelter under plants, under tree bark, or in cracks in a log
   
Places to Raise Young:  
  • Different types of bees build different types of nests where they raise their young
  • Some bees live alone
  • Some bees are social live in colonies or groups
  • Most species of bees build nests in the ground
  • Bees go through a complete metamorphosis (series of physical changes that occur as the animal develops), and the nest provides a safe place to raise the young
  • Most bees build chambers within the nest
    • They will lay an egg in each chamber and provide nectar, pollen, and saliva to feed the young.
Some species of bees are considered social. Social species live in colonies and divide the foraging, defense, and reproductive responsibilities among different groups. The queen is the largest female and is responsible for laying the eggs. Other females are called workers and are responsible for taking care of the young and defending the colony. Males are responsible for reproduction and do not take part in caring for the young or defending the colony.
   
Supporting Bees in your Backyard Habitat:  
  • Plant a variety of native flowering plants
    • Native plants are those that naturally exist in a region (were not brought there by humans)
    • Some bees feed on many types of flowers while others feed on a specific type of flower
To learn more about native plants, visit the Alabama Wildlife Federation's LSI: Native Plants webpage!
  • Have flowers that bloom at different times throughout the year
  • Do not use harsh chemicals on plants to control unwanted insects
    • If chemicals are necessary, do not apply them to the flowers
  • Provide a puddling station or shallow bird bath
  • Leave tree snags, fallen leaves, and a bare patch of soil for bees to use as nesting sites
Mixed Wildflowers
Wikimedia - Alabama Extension
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Puddling Station
pixabay - Seachild
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Common Types of Bee Nests:
     
Bumble Carpenter Honey
Bumblebee Nest
Wikimedia - Panoramedia
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Carpenter Bee Nest
Wikimedia - A. Thom Wolf
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Honey Bee Nest
Dreamstime
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  • Bumble bees are a type of mining bee
  • Build nests underground or near the ground
  • Use an underground hole or under piles of dead leaves
  • Females have special mouthparts that allow them to tunnel into wood
  • Create tunnels into soft wood including old trees, decks, or outdoor furniture
  • Build a hive using wax made by the bee
  • The hive has many cells (compartments), each which holds one egg that develops into a grub-like larva
  • Hives are usually built where there is some protection
     
Leafcutter Mason Miner
Leafcutter Bee Nest
flickr - rodtuk
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Mason Bee Nest
Wikimedia - tpjunier
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Miner Bee Nest
flickr - bramblejungle
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  • Nest in already existing holes
  • Cut rounded portions of leaves to line tunnels and to cover the tunnel exit for protection
  • Nest in already existing holes
  • Use mud to separate tunnels and to plug the ends of tunnels for protection
  • Dig tunnels that are slightly wider than the body
  • Prefer a bare spot of ground where flooding is unlikely
  • The end of each tunnel serves as a nursery for an egg that develops into a larva
     
Wasps are similar to bees in that some species are solitary while other species are social, and some species nest in the ground or tree cavities while others build hives. Wasps use wood fibers from old trees to create their hives. They chew the wood fibers and create a paste-like substance consisting of the wood fibers and saliva. This paste is used to create papery looking cells where the young will be cared for by the colony.
Paper Wasp Nest
Dreamstime
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Interesting Facts
     

#1: 
  • Bees have structures that allow them to easily collect and carry pollen.
  • Many bees have special pollen pouches, either on their legs or under their body.  Bees will often be seen brushing their hairs with their legs. When they do this, they are moving pollen from the hairs on their body into these special pouches.
Bee Pollen Pouch
Dreamstime
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#2: 
  • Only female bees can sting! In bees and wasps, the tube on the back of the body that is used to lay eggs is specialized to sting. Male bees do not have this structure.
  • Bees will only sting if threatened. If you see a bee, it is best to leave it alone!
     

#3: 
  • Because bees have the ability to sting, some animals have learned to avoid them.
  • There are some types of flies that look like bees which helps them avoid threats. These flies do not have the ability to sting.
  • Features that can help distinguish a fly from a bee are:
    • Flies only have one pair of wings, while bees have two pairs
    • Flies have large eyes on the front of their head
    • Flies have a wider body with no distinct waist
    • The back legs on a fly are long and skinny
    • Flies do not have hairy bodies
Yellowjacket Hover Fly
flickr - Roy Niswanter
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#4: 
  • Many bees, like most insects, are cold-blooded (do not generate their own body heat). However, bumble bees do have the ability to generate their own body heat by rappidly vibrating their flight muscles. This behavior allows them warm themselves before flight and to keep their young warm.
     
 


SOURCES USED FOR THIS PAGE
 
 
     
 
 
     
 
     
 
     
Bee Basics
An Introcudtion to our Native Bees		    
     
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