Apis mellifera

Photo Credit: Alvesgaspar via Wikimedia Commons
Apis mellifera
Common Name: honeybee
Other Common Names: honey bee
Animal Guild: Insect
Class > Order > Family: Insecta > Hymenoptera > Apidae
Where is the species found?
States & Provinces
IN, OR, RI, SK, WY
Which phenophases should I observe?
Do you see/hear...?
Activity Adults
One or more adults are seen or heard moving about or at rest.
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For abundance, enter the number of individual animals observed in this phenophase.
Male adults
One or more adult males are seen moving about or at rest. For Apis mellifera, males (drones) are larger than the female worker bees and do not have a stinger.

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Flower visitation
One or more individuals are seen visiting flowers or flying from flower to flower. If possible, record the name of the plant or describe it in the comments field.

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Reproduction Mating
A male and female are seen coupled in a mating position, usually with the male on top of the female.

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Nest building
One or more adults are seen building a nest or hive. For Apis mellifera, worker bees build a wax hive consisting of many adjacent hexagonal cells.

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Drone cells
One or more drone cells are seen in a hive. For Apis mellifera, drone cells are wider than the worker cells and once capped, have a tall, domed top.

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Nest provisioning
One or more adults are seen entering the nest with pollen. For Apis mellifera, pollen is carried on the hind legs in bright yellow, orange, or white pollen baskets.

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Eggs
One or more eggs are seen in a nest or hive. For Apis mellifera, a small white egg is placed at the bottom of a hive cell.

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Development Larvae
One or more larvae are seen moving about or at rest. For Apis mellifera, grub-like larvae develop within open hive cells.

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Pupae
One or more pupae are seen in a cocoon or shell (puparium). For Apis mellifera, larvae become pupae when their hive cells are covered with a waxy cap.

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Dead adults
One or more dead adults are seen.

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Method Individuals in a trap
One or more individuals are seen caught in a trap.

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What do these phenophases look like?

The following Phenophase Photo Guides for this species have been vetted for accuracy by the USA-NPN National Coordinating Office. Most photo guides are developed for a particular local or regional monitoring effort, and some of the content may not apply to your effort or your region. However, we make them available to provide as much help as they may in illustrating phenophases for this species. If you have high quality phenophase photos that you are willing to share with us, please visit the Phenophase Photo Guidelines page.

Be aware there is variation from individual to individual within a species, especially across different regions, so your plant may not look exactly like the one pictured.

Since they do not always include complete definitions for the species, use these photo guides ONLY in conjunction with the official Nature's Notebook phenophase defintions included in the table above, in the phenophase definition sheet that downloads with the datasheet, or in the Observe screen in the mobile app.

ITIS information for honeybee (ITIS TSN: 154396 )