Honey bees turn flowers into food, move pollen across landscapes, and support the plants that feed you and the wildlife around you. If you want to understand bees and honey, start with the colony, because the hive is where nectar becomes honey and where pollination work gets organized.\
You can think of honey bees as highly social insects that live in tight-knit colonies, with each member carrying out a specific role. Honeybee species in the genus Apis are the best-known honey producers, and the western honeybee, Apis mellifera, is the species you are most likely to see in managed hives across the United States.\
Their work matters far beyond the jar of honey on your shelf. Honeybees, honey bee colonies, and other pollinators help shape pollination in gardens, farms, and wild habitats, making bees and honey part of both daily food production and nature itself.
