Solitary nesting bees, like this native leafcutter bee, will get better houses that will augment their numbers through a University of Manitoba open competition.

Top Crop Manager: The latest buzz around wild bees. Move over honey bees.

October 9, 2024 —

Set aside your beliefs about bees. While managed honey bees play an important role in producing honey and pollinating crops, wild or native bees are often better pollinators.

“Honey bees get too much credit for pollination. They are actually pretty poor pollinators. The hundreds of species of wild bees contribute a lot more to pollination,” says Dr. Jason Gibbs, Associate Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Manitoba.

Gibbs says he has nothing against honey bees, as his father is a retired beekeeper in Ontario, but rather highlights the importance of wild bees in pollination. He says most bees don’t sting, are solitary, and about 70 per cent of them nest in underground burrows. Most aren’t black and yellow, and most don’t make honey.

To read the full story, please visit Top Crop Manager.

bees, department of entomology, Honey bees, wild bees