Meet the Fluffy, Funky and Fabulous Native Bees That Call the U.S. Home

Spring has finally arrived in the U.S., bringing its bright spectacle of budding trees and migrating birds, along with more subtle but equally important changes—among them, the first emergence of native bees.

But “native bees” doesn’t actually include the insect most of us picture upon hearing the word “bee.” That yellow-and-black-striped, hive-living, honey-making critter—formally Apis mellifera—hails from Europe. Farmers rely on these tiny imports as, essentially, livestock animals that pollinate food crops and produce honey. But their wild, native counterparts are something completely different.