Is It a Bee?

Not all bees have black and yellow stripes.
There are about 3,500 kinds (species) of bees in North America and they do not all look alike. Many bees do have stripes, but some look a lot like flies and others are shiny blue or green. Bees also come in many different sizes.

How do you know a bee when you see one?
If you see an insect carrying a load of yellowish pollen on its hind legs or under its abdomen it is a female bee. Bees are usually fuzzy, unlike wasps which are smooth and shiny. Bees have two sets of wings, but flies that mimic (copy) bees have just one set.

Bees don't hunt for people to sting
Some bees, like honeybees and bumblebees, use stingers to protect themselves and their habitat if they are threatened. Only female bees have stingers, so about half the bees you see can’t sting you. The females who could sting you are much too busy finding food to bother with you if you don’t bother them. Give them room to work and they will leave you alone.

Bee Anatomy

ARS magazine (May 2000, vol. 48, no. 5) Photo by Jack Dykinga