LEARN • HONEY BEES

Understanding Honey Bees

Honey bees are remarkable creatures with complex social lives, specialized roles, and an enormous impact on the world around us. From the way thousands of bees work together inside a hive to their essential role as pollinators, there’s always something new to discover.

Explore the life of a honey bee, learn how a colony works, uncover a little bee history, and discover just how much our everyday lives depend on these tiny but mighty pollinators.

MEET THE COLONY

Three bees.
Three very different jobs.

Every thriving colony depends on a queen, thousands of female workers, and seasonal male drones—each with a distinct role in keeping the colony going.

Illustration of a queen bee with the text 'Queen, Mother of the colony' underneath.
Illustration of a bee with the caption 'Worker, The hive's workforce'.
Illustration of a honey bee with the label "Drone" and the caption "The male honey bee".

DISCOVER THEIR WORLD

There’s more to a hive than honey

A DAY IN THE LIFE

Follow a worker bee from her first days tending the hive to her final role foraging among the flowers.

A colorful infographic illustrating the daily life of a honey bee, including stages such as hive cleaner, nurse bee, builder and food maker, guardian, and forager, with images of bees, honeycomb, and flowers.

BEES AND THE FOOD WE EAT

What do almonds, blueberries and coffee have in common? Pollinators help bring them to our tables.

An infographic about foods that need honey bees for pollination, featuring images of strawberries, apples, cucumbers, avocados, almonds, blueberries, cherries, and coffee, along with text on pollinator decline and ways to help bees.
Green banner with a bee illustration and the text "DID YOU KNOW?" in yellow, followed by white text explaining honey bees visit flowers and support plants and food systems.