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Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Apidae
Genus: Apis
Species: Mellifera

Honeybees are one of the world’s most important pollinators. A large portion of our diet depends on honeybee pollination. While there are many insects and creatures that pollinate our crops and flowers, honeybees are the only ones suited to keep domestically on a large scale. This makes them important for orchards and other farmers.

The origins of beekeeping can be traced back thousands of years. There have been many types of hive containers found in archeological digs and illustrations of men harvesting honey from nests in cave paintings. Honey was the world’s only sweetener available in the Old World. Honey is also the only food that never spoils if stored properly. Honey was found in ancient ruins in Egypt that was still edible!

Honeybees are not indigenous to North or South America. Early settlers first brought them over to the Americas in the 17th century. Bees were first brought to California in the early 1800’s. At that time people were not even aware that honeybees were important for pollinating crops. Beekeepers and fruit growers often argued because the farmers believed that the bees were damaging their fruit! Today, pollination and honey production are two very large and important industries in our economy.

Honeybees are incredible creatures. They are highly organized and employ highly developed communication techniques. There are many subspecies of honeybees found throughout the world. They come in different sizes and colors. The honeybees used for beekeeping in the United States are typically of European descent. These European bees once made up the wild population throughout the country (having swarmed out of domesticated hives), but now most of the southern states' feral bee populations are saturated with the Africanized bees. This hybrid has been present since the 1990's in some states, and continues to migrate into new areas.