These bees, which were imported to North America to pollinate agricultural crops, are easy to distinguish from native bees by their coloring, which is golden brown with black abdominal stripes. The honeybees you'll see are female workers. Look closely at them, and if they've been visiting flowers you will notice yellow pollen on their legs. Even if you don't think you have a beekeeper in your neighborhood you may still see honeybees. They will fly 3 miles or more from their hive to find what they need. 

On the rare chance a honeybee might sting you, she can only do it once. That's because honeybees have a barbed stinger that is attached to their abdomen and digestive tract. Consequently, when the bee pulls away after stinging, her stinger remains with the victim 

These bees are a little larger than honeybees and have a black body covered with dense yellow and black hair. 

Bumblebees get their name from the noise they create inside a flower. They make the noise by moving around so quickly they sonicate the pollen off the flower and onto the hairs on their body. Like the honeybee, the bumblebees you see are female workers who groom the pollen back and into pollen baskets on their legs. They live in colonies, residing in nests they build in the ground, often in abandoned mammal holes. Bumblebees are not likely to sting you; remember these bees are looking for pollen, not for you!

Carpenter bees are large bees with a black body with dense yellow and black hairs on their head and thorax and a bald abdomen. If you've ever had a large bee swoop down and hover in front of your face, it was probably a carpenter bee. Your first thought when this happens may be that you're under attack, but you're not. It's just being territorial. Carpenter bees, like honeybees and bumblebees, have pollen baskets on their legs. Carpenter bees are also known as wood bees, and they don't have a great reputation. That's because they are the ones (the female workers, again) that bore into wood and make a neat and clean hole. The presence of sawdust on sills or stoops is an indication you should look for a hole, which is the female's reproductive nest. Carpenter bees also have a reputation of being "robber bees". They chew into the side of flowers when they can't fit in the middle and drink the nectar out of a hole in the side. When this happens, they aren't pollinating the flower; they are "stealing" the nectar without providing the natural benefit. On larger flowers, however, they are excellent pollinators.

These are small, fast-flying bees that have metallic colors including blue, dull green and black. They are most active in the spring and get their name from their habit of using mud to close nest cavities. In nature, they look for a hollowed-out stem or a twig. They also will readily come to bee hotels where environmentally conscious gardeners have pre-drilled holes for them. They do not have pollen baskets on their legs. Instead, they carry pollen in hairs on the underside of their abdomens.

Leafcutter bees are black with white hairs covering the thorax and the bottom of the abdomen, and many species have large heads with massive jaws to aid in cutting off pieces of leaves to seal their nests. Also like mason bees, they carry pollen on their abdomens and are very fast flyers.

Blueberry bees are small like honeybees but have a similar color and pattern as a bumblebee. They get their name because they've evolved with native blueberries, and their bodies have become a perfect fit for bell-shaped blueberry flowers. While they're excellent pollinators for blueberries, they also pollinate other plants. Blueberry bees nest in the ground, especially near blueberry plants once they find them.

Squash bees are similar to Blueberry bees in size and because they are specialists of pollinating particular flowers-- those in the family Cucurbita, which includes squash, zucchini, pumpkins and many gourds. These bees typically fly early at dawn and later at dusk to pollinate squash and melon flowers, which means they are rarely a nuisance to humans. The head and thorax of squash bees range in color from black or tan to orange. The thorax is hairy and black with banded abdomen stripes that are black, white or tan.

Sweat bees are also very small bees attracted to small flowers. They have come to be known by the common name of "sweat bee" because they are attracted to human perspiration. They range in color from black to metallic blues and greens, with copper and blue overtones. Some have stripes on their abdomens. They can be difficult to see due to their small size and high speed. They are also excellent pollinators and are active into October and even November.

Hoverflies are also called flower flies, and are flies (not bees!) that pollinate flowers. There are more than 6,000 species, including many that mimic the appearance of bees for protection. However, because they are not bees, there is no risk of getting stung. Once you realize the difference between flies and bees and get attuned to looking for hoverflies, you will start to see them everywhere. One key difference is that bees have four wings and flies have two. Another is that hoverflies and bees have very different eye structures. Flies, for instance, have huge eyes on either side of their head. Hoverflies are especially attracted to flowers with sweet-tasting nectar. Some of these include mountain mint, asters and hyssop.