Pollinators Beyond Honeybees: Solitary Bee Welfare

While honeybees receive most public attention, the thousands of species of solitary bees are equally important and face distinct welfare and conservation challenges.

Key Facts

There are over 20,000 species of bee globally; the vast majority are solitary rather than colonial
Solitary bees including mason bees, leafcutter bees, and mining bees are highly efficient pollinators
They have no honey stores to protect and rarely sting humans
Solitary bee populations are declining from habitat loss, pesticides, and disease
Providing nesting habitat through insect hotels and native plants supports solitary bee populations

Welfare Considerations

Solitary bee welfare intersects individual animal wellbeing and ecosystem function in important ways. While solitary bees are insects whose capacity for suffering remains uncertain, their role in pollinating wild plants and crops creates welfare benefits for countless other animals. Pesticide exposure, particularly to systemic insecticides like neonicotinoids, affects solitary bee navigation, reproduction, and foraging ability in ways that reduce individual fitness. Protecting solitary bee habitat is both a welfare and ecological imperative.

What You Can Do

Install insect hotels with appropriate diameter holes for nesting solitary bees
Plant a diverse native wildflower garden that provides pollen through the entire season
Eliminate neonicotinoid pesticides from your garden and yard completely
Leave bare ground patches in gardens as nesting habitat for mining bees
Support agricultural policies restricting systemic pesticide use in pollinator habitat