There are actually more than 200 species of bee in the UK! Only one of them is the honeybee, and just over 20 are bumblebees. The rest are all solitary bees. 

85-95% of the UK’s insect-pollinated crops rely on wild pollinators, such as many species of bee, moth, butterfly, hoverfly, fly and beetle. Taking over this job ourselves would be difficult and time-consuming, and would cost us an estimated £1.8 billion every year! Many of our rarer bumblebee species don’t forage more than 1km from the nest, and 500m is common – so they need a lot of flower power in a small space!

In spite of how much we rely on them, our bees are in decline. Three bumblebee species have become extinct in recent decades. The recent European Red List for Bees reports that almost one in ten species of wild bee face extinction, and over the past 50 years, half the bee, butterfly and moth species studied in the 2013 State of Nature Report have declined.

Wildflower meadows are a great source of nectar-rich food for many bee species, as well as a place to shelter and nest. But between the 1930s and 1980s, 97% of lowland meadow was lost in England and Wales – an area of 64,000 square kilometres identical in size to the whole of Bradford. Without these nectar-rich habitats, our bees are starting to struggle.

URGENT Report Asian hornet sightings!

Our bees are also under threat from the Asian hornet.  This is a non-native species that was accidentally introduced into France in 2004 and has now colonised all of mainland Europe, with first sightings in the UK in 2016. One nest can consume 11kg of insects in one season, causing serious damage to insect populations, and bee keepers are increasingly concerned.

A nest was found in Hull last year, and the species could be moving north through the UK. Queens may be spotted in spring, before large nests are built often high in trees. Colonies are active through the summer into autumn.

Our bee and insects best defence is by the public reporting sightings. Find out more here from the National Bee Unit. 

How to help your springtime bees

• Plant pollinator-friendly flowers: as well as looking lovely, these will also give your local bees a helping hand to gather the pollen they need. Plant at least two kinds of bee-friendly flower for every flowering period (spring, summer, autumn and winter). 
• Put up a bee hotel for solitary bees: 90% of the UK’s bee population is solitary, and rather than living in a hive or nest, solitary bees live alone. You can buy ready-made wooden bee hotels for your garden, or make your own bee hotel using reeds, bamboo canes and hollow stems to create lots of tunnels which bees can nestle into.
• See who you can spot! Take part in the Great Yorkshire Creature Count 2024, and send your records to the Bees, Wasps & Ants Recording Society or the Bumblebee Conservation Trust.