solitary bees
Non-colonial flower visitors
Solitary bees are bee species in which females build and provision their own nests independently, without the cooperative social structure found in honeybees or bumblebees.
Each female is fertile and raises her offspring alone, typically in tunnels bored into wood, soil, or hollow plant stems.
Despite the name, solitary bees often nest in aggregations near one another when suitable habitat is limited.
They are important pollinators, with many species more efficient than honeybees at pollinating certain crops and wildflowers.
- mason beesSolitary bees using mud
- bee hotelsNesting structures for solitary pollinators
- insect hotelsArtificial nesting structures for invertebrates
- pollenFloral reproductive grains
- pollen basketsBee leg collection structures
ground-nesting · diapause · pollinators · mud nests · oviposition · nectar · native bees · bees · urban gardens · cocoons · buzzing · burrows · habitat fragmentation · ecological niches · holes · invasive species · hollow stems · hibernation
solitary beeshoneybees
Colonial insects producing wax
Apis mellifera · bumblebees · sweat bees · ant colonies · carpenter bees