Saving the Bees: Why Honey Bees Are Not the Answer

12/19/23 • 43 min

No bee is as popular as the honey bee. When we think of a bee, many of us think of this charismatic social bee that lives in large colonies, does the wiggle dance, produces the honey we love, and pollinates many of our crops. Although honey bees can be found all over North America, they only arrived in the 17th century by way of European settlers. Aside from honey bees, in North America, thousands of native bees can be found on the landscape.
We’ve all heard that bees are in decline. As a non-native species, are honey bees the answer to helping us “save the bees”? How do honey bees interact with our native bees on the landscape?
Joining us to help answer these questions is Rich Hatfield. Rich is Xerces Senior Endangered Species Conservation Biologist and Bumble Bee Conservation Lead, and manages all aspects of the Xerces Society’s work on bumble bees. This includes community science projects, as well as understanding the threats to bumble bees and actions we can take to protect them. Rich has studied the factors that impact bumble bees, including the presence of honey bees in our landscapes.

Thank you for listening! For more information go to xerces.org/bugbanter.

Thank you for listening! For more information go to xerces.org/bugbanter.

Previous Episode

A Monarch's Life: Migration, Survival, and Barfing Blue Jays

Last month we met with Isis Howard to talk about western monarch populations and community science. Today, we are going to talk about monarchs east of the Rockies. From their overwintering sites to their multi-generational migration, and the stops along the way, we will take a deeper look at the journey of the monarch.

To lead us on this discussion is Dr.Ray Moranz, Xerces Grazing Lands Pollinator Ecologist, Partner Biologist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service in the Central National Technology Support Center. One focus of his work is to assist in the planning and implementation of monarch butterfly conservation efforts in the south central U.S. Ray has also studied the effects of fire and grazing on prairie plants and butterfly communities.

Thank you for listening! For more information go to xerces.org/bugbanter.

Next Episode

Nature's Original Transformers: The Amazing Beetles

We are all familiar with beetles. Look around your home or neighborhood and you’ll find them, but how familiar are we? What makes a beetle a beetle? How many different species are there? What role do they play in our world?
To help us explore the world of beetles is Jennifer Hopwood, who works for the Xerces Society as a Senior Pollinator Conservation Specialist – a job title that doesn’t really encompass all that she does. Yes, Jennifer provides advice and training for restoring and managing pollinator habitat in a variety of landscapes, but she also focuses on conserving other beneficial insects, including beetles. Jennifer has authored many articles and publications, and is a co-author of several books, including Farming with Native Beneficial Insects.

Thank you for listening! For more information go to xerces.org/bugbanter.

Bug Banter with the Xerces Society - Saving the Bees: Why Honey Bees Are Not the Answer

Transcript

Rachel: Welcome to bug banter with the Xerces Society where we explore the world of invertebrates and how to help these extraordinary animals. If you want to support our work go to Xerces.org/donate.

Rachel: Hi, I'm Rachel in Missoula, Montana.

Matthew: I’m Matthew in Portland, Oregon.

Rachel: No bee is as popular as the honey bee. When we think of a bee, many of us think of this charismatic social bee that lives in large colonies, does the wiggle dance, produces the honey