World Bee Atlas

Global Bee Diversity

How Many Bee Species Exist Worldwide?

Current research estimates between 24,700 and 26,200 bee species worldwide, of which roughly 21,000 have been formally described by taxonomists. The 2026 study by Dorey et al. in Nature Communications revised the long-standing estimate of ~20,000 species upward, noting that significant undescribed diversity remains in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

Bees belong to seven recognised families: Apidae (honeybees, bumblebees, carpenter bees, stingless bees, orchid bees), Megachilidae (mason and leafcutter bees), Halictidae (sweat and furrow bees), Colletidae (plasterer and yellow-faced bees), Andrenidae (mining bees), Melittidae (oil-collecting bees), and Stenotritidae (an ancient family of 21 species found only in Australia).

Which Countries Have the Most Bee Species?

Brazil leads with approximately 3,500 documented species, followed by the United States with around 3,600 and Mexico with 2,000. In Europe, Spain (1,100), Turkey (1,050), and France (1,000) are the most species-rich. South Africa holds the highest diversity on the African continent with around 1,500 species, including the endemic oil-collecting Rediviva genus.

The United Kingdom records around 270 species, making it modestly diverse by European standards but ecologically significant. Yorkshire's heather moorland, where our British Heather Honey is harvested, supports specialist bees like the Heather Colletes that depend on a single plant genus for all their pollen.

Remarkable Bee Species Around the World

The world's largest bee is Wallace's Giant Bee (Megachile pluto), with a wingspan of 63mm, found only on three islands in the North Moluccas of Indonesia. The smallest is Perdita minima, a desert bee from the southwestern United States measuring just 2mm. The world's largest bumblebee is Bombus dahlbomii of southern Argentina and Chile, now endangered by the introduction of European Bombus terrestris.

Some of the most extraordinary bee behaviours include the petal-wrapping nests of Osmia avosetta in the Middle East, the extreme leg elongation of Rediviva emdeorum in South Africa (evolved to reach oil glands deep inside flowers), and the defensive heat-balling of Apis cerana in Japan, where workers collectively raise their body temperature to cook invading hornets alive.

Why HoneyBee & Co. Built This Atlas

Our six-generation beekeeping family works with bees every day. Understanding global bee diversity helps us appreciate the tiny fraction of the world's bees that produce the honey in our jars, and the vast majority of species that pollinate silently without ever making a drop of honey. This atlas is part of our Bee Education Hub, alongside the UK Bee Distribution Map and Your Plate Without Bees.

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