The 12th Annual 2024 Beauty of the Bee Photo Contest is now CLOSED and no longer accepting entries. Thanks for all the photos from talented photographers!
We will be announcing winners next week.
"Bee-Dazzle us with your love of bees!"
The 2024 contest is now CLOSED!
Send us your favorite original photo of bees in any setting, whether in the wild or in your own back yard.
We will accept one photo entry per person.
Bee creative!
Your photos can make a difference! The Beauty of the Bee Photo Contest helps raise awareness of the plight of bees!
If you’ve been following our work on behalf of pollinator health, you know that concern for the survival of all pollinators (including bees) is a critical part of the fight for the integrity of environmental biodiversity and food justice.
Images inspire others to get involved and care! YOU can help save bees by capturing their special beauty. Prior photo entries have helped Beyond Toxics make the case for changing laws and policies, such as the ban on neonics in Eugene, Portland and Milwaukie, Oregon.
Help us continue our work to save our precious pollinators by donating to Beyond Toxics TODAY!
Please visit our Facebook group so you can vote for your favorite photos as they are posted. NOTE: Facebook votes will not be the primary determining factor in choosing winners, but we will provide special recognition for the photo that gets the most positive recognition on Facebook.
What is the current state of affairs regarding the health of bee populations?
A: It's a MIXED BAG...
As of 2024, the situation regarding bee populations in the U.S. shows some surprising developments. Honeybee populations, in particular, have seen significant growth. Over the past five years, the number of honeybee colonies has increased by more than one million, bringing the total to nearly 4 million. This increase is largely attributed to the economic value of honeybees, especially for crops like almonds, which rely heavily on bee pollination. This economic necessity has driven efforts to maintain and even expand honeybee populations despite ongoing challenges such as diseases and environmental stresses (Marketplace).
However, the situation is not uniformly positive across all bee species. Wild bees and other native bee species continue to face severe challenges, including habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and diseases. Unlike honeybees, wild bees cannot be managed as easily, which makes their declines more difficult to counteract. The survival and health of these bee populations are crucial for biodiversity and the pollination of wild plants, but they receive less attention and fewer conservation resources compared to commercial honeybees.
Overall, while managed honeybee populations are increasing due to their economic importance and active management, wild bee species in the U.S. are still experiencing significant declines, indicating a mixed overall picture for the health of bee populations in 2024.
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1) Honeybee populations are hitting record numbers. Weren’t they dying off before?
Kai Ryssdal, Sarah Leeson, and Sofia Terenzio (May 16, 2024)
2) Q&A: Are honey bees, wild bees still in trouble?
by Diana Yates, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (June 30, 2023)
A new report reveals that U.S. beekeepers lost roughly half of the honey bees they managed last year.
Reference: https://beeinformed.org/2023/06/22/united-states-honey-bee-colony-losses-2022-23-preliminary-results-from-the-bee-informed-partnership/
More reading on the subject of bees:
Learn more about What You Can Do to Save Bees (PDF)
Read Krystal Abrams' blog, "Buzzing with Excitement: Bee Surveys Reveal a Hidden World of Native Bee Riches!"
