Bee or Wasp?
Bees and wasps can be difficult to tell apart
Bees and wasps are difficult to tell apart because they are closely related. In fact, some wasps are more closely related to bees than they are to other wasps! This is because bees evolved from wasps. Due to this close relationship, bees and wasps have a lot of features in common including similar antennae, similar body shape, and similar body size. Bees and wasps also have similar colouring with bee and wasp species being red, orange, yellow, black, and a rainbow of colourful metallics.
With this information in mind, please note that all of the characteristics that are listed here are general differences between bees and wasps because there are species on both sides that break these general rules. This makes it difficult to tell them apart, but going through all the characteristics listed here will help you differentiate most bees from most wasps.
Bees have dense hair for pollen collection and wasps are sparsely hairy
"Tawny Mining Bee (Andrena fulva)" by Lukas Large is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
"Bald-faced Hornet - Dolichovespula maculata, Herndon, Virginia" by Judy Gallagher is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Bees are generally more hairy than wasps. On the left, you can see a tawny mining bee and on the right is a bald faced hornet. Bees have a lot of hair to capture pollen. Andrena have branched hairs, which look like split hairs all along their length, on their hind leg to hold their pollen. You can see this bee also has dense hair on it's abdomen (the light orange section) and legs which is not generally seen in wasps. Some bees only have bands of hair on the top of their abdomens and some have densely hairy underbellies.
Wasps do not have to be densely hairy because most of them do not have to collect pollen. They do have some hair for sensory purposes, but are not densely hairy like bees.
Bees generally have wider legs and wasps tend to have skinny legs
"Apis mellifera" by Gnilenkov Aleksey is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
"Ceropales maculata" by Wedontneedfeatherstofly is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Bees generally have wider legs than wasps. This pictures above are the honey bee clinging to a piece of grass and a spider wasp standing on a leaf. Bees have wider legs because they have hair for pollen collection or because their legs have structures for resource collection. Bees have wider legs for pollen capture, pollen transportation, or grooming. The honey bee has wide back legs because they have a pollen collecting structure there.
Wasps do not have wide legs because they generally don't feed on pollen. Instead, they have long slender legs, that may have spines or sparse stiff hairs, in order to carry prey or to hold onto prey in order to sting or deposit eggs into prey.
Bees generally have a stockier waist and body compared to wasps
"Sweat bee (Halictus parallelus)" by insectsunlocked is marked with CC0 1.0.
"Thread-Waisted Wasp" by DanielaC173 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
Bees are generally wider and more robust compared to wasps. On the left is a regular honey bee and on the right is a thread waisted wasp. Bees are generally stockier because they do not use their sting for anything other than defense.
Wasps can have very long and very slender waists. Some wasps need their slender waists to paralyze their prey with their sting. Other wasps have an ovipositor, so they benefit from a long slender waist to lay their eggs within other organisms.
Bees generally have eyes without notches and some common wasps have notches
"Nomia omanomano, m, oman, face_2014-08-09-19.26.02 ZS PMax" by Sam Droege is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.
"Vespula germanica (Deutsche Wespe)" by u278 is marked with CC0 1.0.
Somes wasps commonly mistaken for bees (including those in the family Vespidae) have a notch in their eye. On the left is an alkali bee and on the right is a german yellow jacket. Bees generally have eyes without a notch as seen on the left. This is partially what gives bees a 'cuter' appearance compared to these wasps.
The german yellowjacket on the right has a notch in its eye (in this picture, the notch is yellow). All wasps in the Vespidae family, including yellowjackets, hornets, and paper wasps, have this notch. Some other families of wasps have these notches as well, but it is a rarer characteristic in bees. The notch in a wasps eye gives it a 'meaner' appearance.
Bees fold their wings over their abdomen and some common wasps do not
"Halictus confusus/ tumulorum ♂, Parc de Woluwé, Bruxelles" by Frank.Vassen is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
"Gallische Feldwespe (Polistes dominula)" by dé.wé. is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
Wasps in the family Vespidae fold their wings over their bodies in a different manner than bees. On the left is a halictid bee and on the right is a European yellowjacket. Bees fold their so they are flat over top of their abdomen. This allows bees to get into small spaces like small holes in the ground or hollow twigs to build their nest. If you are looking at a bee while it forages on flowers, its abdomen will be at least partially obscured by its wings.
The European yellowjacket on the right is displaying a different way to fold wings. It fold them parallel to its body instead of over top of its abdomen. When looking at a wasp in the Vespidae family, you will always be able to see the markings on it's abdomen.
Almost all bees collect pollen and most wasps do not collect pollen
"Diadasia bee on opuntia blossom" by Jengod is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
"Vespula vulgaris" by ComputerHotline is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Bees and wasps obtain their protein differently, so they behave differently! On the left is a squash bee and on the right is a common wasp. Most bees are only interested in flowers because they get all their nutrition from flower nectar and pollen. If you see an insect deep in a flower and covered in pollen (and sticking its tongue out) you are most likely observing a bee!
Many wasps are omnivorous. To meet their protein requirements, they consume insect or animal proteins. To meet their carbohydrate requirements, they tend to feed on fruit or nectar. This means that wasps can visit flowers, but most are disinterested in pollen and are just there for nectar. Wasps are also common visitors to picnics. This is because they will eat any available animal protein, so bits of a hot dog or a burger, and any sugary liquid, so soda or juice, if possible.
Some examples of bees that look like wasps
"Sphecodes aroniae" by skitterbug is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
"Anthidium manicatum" by rojasburke is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
"Nomada marshamella" by S. Rae is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
"File:The Female Of The Species (260701299).jpeg" by Terry Lucas is licensed under CC BY 3.0.
Here are some picture of bees that look very similar to wasps! These bees have some combination of wasp characteristics including slender legs, not being covered in dense hair, and a slender waist. They are, however, all bees!
Some examples of wasps that look like bees
"Feather-legged Scoliid Wasp - Dielis plumipes, Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Rock Hall, Maryland, June 17, 2021" by Judy Gallagher is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
"Pseudomasaris wheeleri" by Jerry James is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.
"Avispa parásita sobre una lecherula - Vespa paràsita sobre una lleterola d'hort - Chrysis ignita & Euphorbia helioscopica" by ferran pestaña is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
"Vespula vulgaris" by Tom is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Here are some picture of wasps that look very similar to bees! These wasps are all displaying various bee characteristics including foraging at flowers, being hairy (although not densely so), and having a wider waist and body.
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Author: Melissa Platsko
Date published: August 16, 2023