The Benefits of Bees to the Environment

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The biggest benefit of bees to the environment is pollination of wild plants. Around 87.5% of the world’s flowering plant species rely on animals to move their pollen, and bees are the most important group doing that work. Without it, many wild plants would set little or no seed, and the fruit, seeds, shelter and soil cover they provide for everything else would shrink.

This article looks at bees as part of nature rather than farming: how they keep plant communities going, who eats what they help produce, and why the thousands of wild bee species matter as much as the honey bee. If you want the broader case, including food, honey and the economy, read why bees are important.

1. Bees pollinate most wild flowering plants

A 2011 study by Ollerton, Winfree and Tarrant, published in the journal Oikos, estimated that about 308,000 flowering plant species, or 87.5% of the total, are pollinated by animals. The share rises from around 78% in temperate plant communities to about 94% in the tropics. Insects do most of that pollination, and bees are the leading insect pollinators because they visit flowers on purpose, to collect pollen and nectar for their young.

A bee’s branched body hairs pick up pollen grains, and many bees stick to one kind of flower on a trip. That combination moves pollen between plants of the same species, which is what cross-pollination needs. You can read more about the mechanics in how pollination works.

2. They keep plant populations genetically healthy

Many plants can self-pollinate a little, but seed from cross-pollination is usually more vigorous and more varied. By carrying pollen between separate plants, sometimes across hundreds of yards, bees mix genes within wild plant populations. That variety helps plant populations cope with disease, drought and a changing climate. A meadow of genetically similar, poorly pollinated plants is fragile; a well-pollinated one keeps renewing itself from seed.

3. Bees support food webs far beyond themselves

Pollination turns flowers into fruit, berries, nuts and seeds. Those are food for a long list of animals:

• Birds: songbirds rely on berries and seeds from bee-pollinated shrubs and wildflowers, especially in autumn and winter.
• Mammals: bears, foxes, mice, voles and deer eat wild fruit, berries and seed heads.
• Insects: many insects depend on the same plants for leaves, stems or seed.

Bees are also food themselves. Birds such as bee-eaters and kingbirds catch them, and spiders, dragonflies, robber flies and some wasps prey on them. Skunks and bears raid nests for brood. A healthy bee population is a working link in the food web, both as pollinator and as prey.

4. They help plants hold soil and regenerate habitat

Wildflowers, shrubs and trees that set seed well spread and fill gaps. Their roots hold soil against wind and rain, and their leaf litter feeds soil life. After a fire, flood or land clearing, bee-pollinated plants are among the species that recolonize bare ground and start rebuilding cover.

Bees also work the soil directly. About 70% of native bee species in North America nest underground, digging tunnels in bare or lightly vegetated soil. Those small burrows loosen the ground and let air and water in, much like a tiny version of what earthworms do. That is one reason conservation groups recommend leaving patches of bare soil in gardens.

5. They sustain biodiversity

Because so many plants depend on them, bees sit near the base of land ecosystems. More bee diversity generally means more plant diversity, and more plant diversity means more habitat and food for other wildlife. The relationship runs both ways: bees need a steady run of flowers from spring to autumn, so varied plant communities support more bees.

Bees are also a useful measure of environmental health. They are sensitive to pesticides, habitat loss and poor forage, so a decline in local bee numbers is often an early sign that something is wrong in the wider landscape. See how pesticides affect pollinators.

6. Native bees do jobs honey bees cannot

Scientists have described about 20,000 bee species worldwide, and roughly 4,000 are native to North America. The honey bee is not one of them; it was brought from Europe in the 1600s. For wild plants, native bees are often the main pollinators.

• Buzz pollination. About 8% of flowering plants, more than 20,000 species, hold their pollen inside tube-like anthers that only release it when shaken. Bumble bees and many other native bees vibrate their flight muscles to shake it out. Honey bees cannot do this.
• Specialists. Some native bees visit only one plant family or even one genus, and some of those plants depend heavily on them.
• Cool, wet weather. Bumble bees and mason bees fly in cooler, cloudier conditions than honey bees, so they pollinate early spring flowers and mountain plants.

Wild insects matter even on farms. A 2013 study in Science covering 41 crop systems found that more visits from wild insects increased fruit set about twice as much as the same increase in honey bee visits.

Honey bees vs. native bees: environmental roles compared

Can honey bees hurt native bees? Evidence is mixed. A 2017 review of published studies found that 53% of those looking at competition for flowers reported negative effects on wild bees, 28% found none and the rest were mixed. The concern is greatest where large numbers of hives are placed in natural areas with limited forage. For backyard beekeepers, planting plenty of flowers helps both.

How to boost the benefits bees bring to your area

• Plant a sequence of flowers so something blooms from early spring to late autumn, with native plants wherever you can. Our list of bee-friendly plants is a good start.
• Leave some bare soil and dead stems for ground-nesting and stem-nesting bees.
• Cut back on pesticides, and never spray open flowers.
• Offer nest sites for mason and leafcutter bees. See how to raise solitary bees.
• Mow less often so clover and dandelions can flower.

Frequently asked questions

How do bees benefit the environment?

Mainly through pollination. Bees help most wild flowering plants set seed and fruit, which keeps plant communities diverse, feeds birds and mammals, and keeps soil covered and stable. They are also food for many predators.

What would happen to the environment without bees?

Other pollinators such as flies, moths, beetles, birds and bats would take up some of the work, but not all of it. Plants that depend on bees, especially buzz-pollinated and specialist plants, would set far less seed and decline. Animals that eat their fruit and seeds would lose food, and habitats would become less diverse.

Are honey bees good for the environment?

Honey bees are excellent crop pollinators and pollinate many wild plants too. In North America they are a managed, introduced species, though, and very high hive numbers in natural areas can compete with native bees for flowers. Planting more forage is the best way to make sure there is enough for both.

What percentage of plants need bees?

About 87.5% of flowering plant species are pollinated by animals, according to a widely cited 2011 estimate; a 2023 recalculation put it closer to 90%. Bees are the largest single group of those pollinators, though not the only one.

Do bees help the soil?

Indirectly and directly. Pollinated plants spread and hold soil with their roots, and about 70% of native bee species dig nests in the ground, which loosens and aerates it.

Want to help conservation more directly? Our guide to bee conservation covers practical steps for gardeners and beekeepers.