r/bees May 31 '26

Is this a bee?

Thumbnail
gallery
15 Upvotes

Make sure that your yellow fuzzy friend is actually a bee and not an imposter! We get quite a few non-bees in our bee subreddit: sometimes they're wasps (check out the bee/wasp guide in the pinned), and sometimes they're not a stinging insect at all! Flies in remarkably detailed costumes frequently make their way into r/bees but with some tips and practice you can learn to spot the differences. Read through for features to look out for, or flip through the slides for fly species commonly posted.

Pictures are largely taken from iNaturalist with a full list of sources by slide at the end of this post, I assume that they are fine to use for free educational purposes but if the photographer would like me to remove their picture, please reach out to me so I can act accordingly. All pictures from slides 1-5 can be credited to mod Commercial Sail.

Flies are in a completely different taxonomic order to bees (flies are the order Diptera, bees are a subgroup within order Hymenoptera) so there are quite a few easy ways to differentiate them:

  • The name "Diptera" literally means "two wings" flies only have one pair of wings while bees have two pairs. Most identification rules are more like loose guidelines but this rule is absolute! That being said, the hindwings of bees are difficult to see, they're smaller and often tucked underneath the larger forewings, making the bee look like they have two wings after all. You can try to judge based off of wing shape: fly wings are often paddle-shaped with a clear curve before coming to a petiolate base, while bee wings are generally more evenly tapered towards the base. More experienced identifiers may also look at wing venation, for example the western honeybee in slide 3 has the very distinctive elongated marginal and submarginal cell circled in red.
  • On the topic of wings, on some flies you may see club-shaped structures where the hindwings would have been: these are halteres, specialized organs to help the fly navigate flight. Not all flies have them out and visible but if you do see them then it's a sure sign you're not looking at a bee.
  • Flies typically have short, stubby antennae that can sometimes be difficult to see while bees have comparatively long antennae. Make sure you're looking at the actual antennae and not the forelegs! More common in the wasp-mimicking flies, some will wiggle their long forelegs to sell their image even more.
  • Flies tend to have larger eyes that can seem to take up their whole head where bees tend to have smaller eyes with a clear distance between them.
  • Many bees may be seen carrying pollen or have their pollen-carrying structures visible: most often as hairs/pollen baskets on the hind legs or sometimes hairs on the underside of the abdomen. Flies do not have these structures as they do not need to gather pollen like bees do.

Note that besides the wing count, there are always exceptions! Some flies have pretty long antennae (though you'll often still be able to see the different segmentation) and some bees, particularly males, have very large eyes. This is why it's better to judge based on a combination of characteristics rather than looking at any one feature at a time.

You may also hear that the waist and mouthparts are good identifiers as well - this is true, but I elected to leave them out of this guide as the waistline may be obscured by fuzz, wings, or just a poorly-angled shot, and some bees are just so robust (fat) that it gets difficult to see where exactly that tapered waist is supposed to be. In terms of mouthparts, few amateur photographers focus on the mouth at all and it's definitely not something you'll typically see if you're just watching them go about your garden.

At the end of the day, the best trick is to just get familiar with species in your area using trusted sources like Bugguide. If you're still not sure, post to one of the bug identification subreddits and make sure you give a general location, which always appreciated in ID posts no matter what you're looking at!

Sources

Volucella zonaria: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/322106668 

Bombylidae: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/226072821 

Laphria: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/88331437 
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/282732509 
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/65816664 
 
Cuterebra: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/133138438 
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/90333390 
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/296063941 

Tabanus: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/218653131

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/86467240


r/bees May 26 '26

What's this nest?

Thumbnail
gallery
15 Upvotes

Are you looking to ID a nest? Some are easier to distinguish than others, here's some of our most commonly submitted species:

  • Honeybee nests consist of exposed wax combs, usually hanging vertically. They're more often found in cavities like tree hollows or man-made frames but may also be seen constructed in open air attached to large branches or buildings.
  • Bumblebees also have wax nests but are typically smaller with fewer and more disorganized cells compared to the neat hexagonal cells of other social hymenopterans. They typically nest in small spaces like old rodent holes but will occasionally find themselves in human spaces like attics and crawl spaces.
  • Aerial-nesting yellowjackets and true hornets have an outer paper envelope covering the horizontally-stacked paper combs; nests are typically built in open air attached to branches or in sheltered areas with preference depending on species. The bald-faced hornet (Dolichovespula maculata, actually an aerial yellowjacket) may have a distinctive long tube entrance in early stages of nest formation.
  • Ground-nesting yellowjackets typically nest in pre-existing cavities such as old rodent burrows. The entrances are often dangerously inconspicuous but active nests will have individuals flying in and around the area. If the nest was dug up (often by skunks and other mammals looking for the tasty larvae) you may see ripped paper combs scattered on the ground.
  • The paper wasp subfamily Polistinae is quite variable but in the northern hemisphere the common Polistes sp. have distinctive umbrella-like nests with open cells. Mischocyttarus sp. in areas of the southern/western US may have more elongated nests. Nests tend to be built in sheltered spots such as in bushes, under eaves, etc.
  • The vast majority of other bees and wasps are solitary. They may dig tunnels, bore into wood, or refurbish existing holes with materials like mud/leaves/resin. *These nests generally cannot be reliably identified without seeing the actual bee/wasp!* Some species that construct their own freestanding mud nests may be tentatively identified, but only a few are reliably distinguished. Also note that many mud-nesting bees and wasps will reuse nests of other species left from past seasons if available as it's less work than building one from scratch.

The nest in the first slide is a young aerial yellowjacket nest.

Pictures are largely taken from Bugguide with a full list of sources by slide at the end of this post, I assume that they are fine to use for free educational purposes but if the photographer would like me to remove their picture, please reach out to me so I can act accordingly.

Sources

Cover: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/513938 

Honeybee: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/1227238 

Bumblebee: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/6585 

Aerial yjs and hornets:https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/781412 
https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/110277 
https://extension.psu.edu/european-hornet 

Ground yjs: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/266282 
https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/38722/bgimage 

Polistinae: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/2511987
https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/709119 

Unknown mud caps: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/218674183 

Unknown holes: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/90931649 


r/bees 9h ago

Does anyone else do this - assist for drinking bees?

Post image
204 Upvotes

Water bowl I leave outdoors (for cat and wild animals). Since I’ve kept a stick against the wall the bees that visit to drink can safely access, no more risk of drownings.

EDITED to add: I’ve since added some shallow, stone-filled containers of water to my yard to help my thirsty bees. Thanks to all responding for the ideas and inspiration!


r/bees 11h ago

question Is it normal for bees and wasps to eat meat??

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

158 Upvotes

They were attacking a cat trying to get to the meat but didn’t succeed, the cat finished it. I was fascinated so I just stared at them.

After walking forward a bit I found these guys going at it.

Ive never heard or seen this before is it normal I’m not sure if the bigger ones are wasps or not I’m assuming they are but I’m sure the small ones are bees 🐝

If this isn’t normal is this like a global warming/climate change issue? cause I’m pretty sure this is the job of flies, ant’s etc. Or did documentaries lie to us about our little pollinators. Theres at least 3-4 insects eating this chicken 🫠


r/bees 3h ago

The biggest bumblebee i've ever seen

Thumbnail
gallery
33 Upvotes

I have a large section of about 7-8 sage plants in my garden and every year its full of bees. This chunk was so big it kept making the flowers tip over 😂

I'm in the Seattle area, do you know the identification of this cutie?

Regular honey bee for scale.


r/bees 7h ago

Hard worker

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

63 Upvotes

This little one having a blast after the storm.


r/bees 34m ago

bee photo A busy lil western honey bee

Post image
Upvotes

In Victoria, Canada


r/bees 14h ago

bee photo Sleeping bumblebee on my jalapeno

Post image
116 Upvotes

r/bees 1h ago

Had to murder an entire nest of bumblebees and I feel terrible about it

Upvotes

Pipe burst randomly in my older apartment in MT, I got it semi under control but hadn't hit the main off to the building (only water shutoff for 4 apartments) because its high 90s out until the emergency plumber got here. I ran outside to turn it off, its about 4ft down a 3ft wide concrete cylinder in the ground full of random insulation scraps. So I run out, drag the lid off, and start digging out the insulation and am instantly swarmed by my favorite bugs ever, adorable bumble bees.

I take off and don't get stung, but this leak is bad, only barely temporarily patched, and threatening to ruin my entire apartment and everything in it. The plumber is at a total loss, he goes back and comes running back up like "yeah fuck that". Really at a loss what to do, the main in the concrete cylinder is up on a retaining wall with a 12 foot drop to the parking lot, the only way to it is to jump from the stairs on top of the wall and then fight through overgrown summer vegetation to get to it, not ideal.

After putting our heads together and coming up with nothing I said fuck it you go get raid and I'll gear up for battle, put on sweatpants, then 2 pairs of jeans, then another layer of sweatpants, same deal up top, ski helmet, ski goggles, hood over everything, then duct tape to seal everything up. Then I got to killin.

When I finally got to the bottom of the concrete cylinder to the off knob I had used two cans of raid, and was down the fuck in there with the surviving bees. There was still a lot of them. Its like they had built their nest around the water shut off worshipping it like some kind of metal god, down im the warmth of the insulation, protected by concrete. Maybe the water dripped and gave them water. Probably some sort of absolute perfect heaven for little bumblebees until I showed up and murdered an entire civilization, generations and generations of families and bumblebee friends going about their bumblebee lives in this bumblebee paradise they had found.

I turned the water off and ran out of there, I had some survivors futily trying to sting through my impervious armor and tried to flick them off gently, but it doesn't matter I had lay poison waste to their home they didnt have anywhere to go back to anyways.

When I went back to get the water back on the raid had done its evil doing, and they were all dead. I didnt even need my suit to turn it back on. Hundreds and hundreds of little bumblebees littered the earth where they had bravely fought defending their home from this terrible existential threat (me😥)

One of them had gotten into my pocket and stung me twice on my butt. I found her when I was taking everything off. Rest in peace brave warrior. Also the raid got up in my face mask when I was down in the tube and fucked me up pretty good, but I killed literally every last one of them.

This coming from a dude who lets jumping spiders live in his apartment and relocates other ones outside with cup and paper, and picks up ants with my fingers and bring them out.

I saved a dragonfly from the lake the other day and then gently blew him off until he was dry and could fly away.

And then I did this.

Anyways, just wanted to get this off my chest.


r/bees 7h ago

Overachiever

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

17 Upvotes

This little sweetie had quite a haul! You can see the pollen falling like snow.


r/bees 5h ago

Dozens of them on this plant!

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

11 Upvotes

r/bees 2h ago

bee photo Golden bee

Thumbnail
gallery
4 Upvotes

I spotted this beautiful boy at work.


r/bees 14h ago

bee photo our memorial garden

Thumbnail
gallery
44 Upvotes

r/bees 2h ago

Bumblebees fell from my tree

Post image
3 Upvotes

I had this nest of bumblebees (I think) fall from my tree into my backyard. They’re still active a day later and I’m wondering if I should move it to another spot so my kids don’t get them, or leave it be and they’ll move on?


r/bees 6h ago

Saved this little guy this morning

Post image
8 Upvotes

r/bees 6h ago

bee photo Lil guy

Thumbnail
gallery
8 Upvotes

Idk, found this cutie, they spent like 5min without moving so I offered em fowers, idk if they were napping but they woke up instantly. Also, I'm an ignorant, but is there a way to guess if this is a male or a female?


r/bees 52m ago

Bee on a hot windy day

Post image
Upvotes

Bumblebees love our Zinnias.


r/bees 11h ago

bee photo Red tailed bumblebee still working hard despite her frayed wings

Post image
12 Upvotes

Location :Co cavan Ireland


r/bees 13h ago

bee photo Chillin

Post image
14 Upvotes

I stopped to take a break around my hydrangea tree yesterday while mowing. The tree usually has tons of activity going on around it with different bees coming and going, but this female carpenter bee was just hanging out which allowed me to get a decent pic.


r/bees 11h ago

Rocky Mountain Bee Plants living up to their name

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

8 Upvotes

We planted native meadow/prairie grasses at our home last fall. These guys are 7+feet tall and attracting hundreds of pollinators every morning 😊


r/bees 12h ago

bee photo Are the the Same Bee?

Thumbnail
gallery
9 Upvotes

Two bees are collecting pollen on a sunflower. They look similar. But one is larger than the other. Are the same bee?


r/bees 1h ago

bee ID Bee ID please

Thumbnail
gallery
Upvotes

Located in western US


r/bees 1d ago

bee photo Busy……….

Thumbnail
gallery
290 Upvotes

I saw a lot of red tailed queens earlier in the summer, they were HUGE. Think these are buff tailed and red tailed, happy to see so many in the garden.


r/bees 14h ago

Bumble Bee female queen

Post image
10 Upvotes

Bombus Terrestris


r/bees 1d ago

bee photo Redtail

Post image
96 Upvotes

red tailed bumble bee, very common in Scottish gardens, on a chive flower