BEES HELP PUT FOOD ON OUR TABLES.

Pollination is how plants reproduce. Between 75% and 95% of all flowering plants on earth — including about 900 food crops — rely on help from pollinators.^[1] While there are many insects and animals who can pollinate, bees in particular are incredibly effective at this ecosystem service.

How do bees pollinate plants?

Bees need flowers for food, and plants depend on bees to help them reproduce via pollination. In nature, this is a prime example of a mutualistic relationship. Here’s a quick breakdown of how the process works.

Pollen
When foraging for food, a bee collects nectar and pollen from a flower blossom. Some pollen grains from the stamen (the flower’s male reproductive organ) sticks to the bee’s hair.

Pistil
When the bee visits the next flower of the same species, some of this pollen rubs off onto the pistil (the flower’s female reproductive organ).

Fertilization
That simple transfer of pollen fertilizes the flower, which leads to the production of fruit and/or seeds. When the seeds fall to the ground (or are spread elsewhere by wind, water, animals or humans), new plants grow. This is how many of our vegetables, fruits, garden flowers, legumes and nuts reproduce!

Why are bees such effective pollinators?

Bees have special behaviors and physical adaptations that make them especially effective at transferring pollen between flowers.

They spend much of their lives visiting flowers to drink nectar and gather pollen for their offspring.
Their bodies have many fuzzy hairs that collect pollen grains as they forage. Females bees also have specialized structures on their legs (or belly) that are designed to hold pollen.
They often visit the same type of flower in a single foraging trip, which means more pollen transferred across plants of the same species.

What is buzz pollination?

Certain plants keep their pollen stashed deep within their anthers, where it can only be dislodged by a buzz pollinator. Luckily, bumblebees and several other native bee species possess this special skill, also known as floral sonication!

While grasping tightly onto the flower’s anther, the bee will rapidly vibrate her flight muscles (up to 24,000 vibrations per minute) to shake the pollen out. She’ll collect much of this pollen on her legs to take back to her nest, but some of the loose grains that stick to her body will then be transferred to the female part of another flower of the same species — resulting in fertilization!

Blueberries, tomatoes, cranberries, eggplants and potatoes are just a few of the many foods that need the assistance of a buzz pollinator to reproduce. Flowers like senna and partridge pea (shown) are also buzz pollinated.

How do bees impact our food supply?

Bees are responsible for pollinating nearly 1/3 of the food we eat, including about 900 food crops worldwide.^[2] They make it possible for us to enjoy countless fruits, vegetables and nuts.

Here are just a few of the healthy foods we wouldn’t have without their pollination services: apples, almonds, asparagus, broccoli, blueberries, cashews, cranberries, cucumbers, cantaloupes, cherries, mangoes, peaches, pears, pumpkins, raspberries, strawberries, tomatoes and watermelon.

Bees contribute to higher crop yields, as well as size and quality of fruits produced. Research conducted on berry farms has shown that pollination from native bees could boost production up to 36% on one farm alone.^[3] Other crops that are typically wind-pollinated or self-pollinated are sometimes more productive when visited by bees.

How do bees impact our ecosystems?

Beyond our food supply, consider all the other bee-pollinated flowers, shrubs and trees that insects and animals depend on for their everyday needs.

Forage⁠ (leaves, fruits, nuts, berries, seeds, nectar, pollen)⁠
Nesting sites and protective shelter
The host plants necessary to complete their life cycle (e.g., milkweed for monarch butterflies, spicebush for swallowtail butterflies)⁠

When we protect bee populations, we protect our food supply, natural ecosystems and biodiversity. That's why our collective Beesponsible actions are so important!