Beyond honey bees: 10 kinds of bees you might see in your Washtenaw County garden

If you hope to find 10 species of bees, you might think you need to visit an expansive nature preserve with a diversity of native flora. But this is not the case; you can find a surprising diversity of bee species in a small garden in any city, if there are a few carefully chosen native flower species for bees to visit. You can quickly check off the conspicuous honey bees (Apis mellifera) and bumble bees (several species of Bombus). You can tell that these are bees because they are black and yellow and fuzzy. But to go further, you may need to reconsider assumptions about what a “bee” looks like. Most bee species are tiny, less than half the size of a honey bee. They may be shiny green or fuzzy brown. They may make nests in the ground or in hollow twigs. What they have in common is a diet of pollen and nectar (unlike most wasps), but some skip the flowers and find these resources in the nests of … other bees. There are more than 400 bee species in MIchigan.

Click any image for a larger magnification.

1. Small carpenter bees (genus Ceratina)

ID: Small (5-7 mm), shiny, green, blue, or black bees. Pollen is carried on weak hind-leg scopae (pollen-collecting hairs). There is no resemblance to the large carpenter bee (Xylocopa), which resembles a bumble bee.
Nesting: Hollow stems.

Ceratina can be hyper-abundant on a wide variety of flowers--in our spring 2026 Washtenaw County survey, these bees were the most common genus.

iNaturalist records for Ceratina in Washtenaw Co, MI.

2. Sweat bees (Lasioglossum)

ID: Larger species are brown/black, with abdominal hair bands. Others are are tiny (4-6 mm) and tinged with green, blue, or coppery coloration. Pollen is carried on hind-leg scopae.
Nesting: Burrows underground.

There are more than 100 species in Michigan; species may be solitary, social, or parasitic.

iNaturalist records for Lasioglossum in Washtenaw Co, MI.

3. Green sweat bees (several genera)

ID: Similar to the larger (8-10mm) Lasioglossum, but with iridescent green color.
Nesting: Burrows in ground.

In our spring 2026 Washtenaw County survey, one species--Augorochlora pura (lower photo)--was the most abundant bee after Ceratina.

iNaturalist records for striped sweat bees and Augorochlorine sweat bees.

4. Mining bees (Andrena)

ID: Brown/black, some with abdominal hair bands. Generally similar to Lasioglossum, but females are distinguished by patches of hair (fovea) on the face, and pollen collecting structures on thorax as well as hind legs.    
Nesting: Underground burrows, sometimes occurring in aggregations.

There are more than 100 species in Michigan, which range in size from 6-15mm. The majority of these are active only in spring.

iNaturalist records for Andrena in Washtenaw Co, MI.

5. Leafcutter bees (Megachile)

ID: Black and white striped, pollen-collecting hairs underneath the abdomen.
Nesting: Hollow stems.

Named for the way that females cut perfectly round divots from leaves or petals to line nests.

iNaturalist records for leafcutters.

6. Cuckoo bees (Nomada and others)

ID: Wasp-like, minimal hairs, striking patterns of red or yellow.
Nesting: Parasitic in the ground nests of other bees.

These visit flowers for nectar, but their larvae feed on pollen collected by other bees.

iNaturalist records for Nomad bees in Washtenaw Co, MI.

7. Wool carder bees (Anthidium)

ID: Yellow/black coloration, pollen-collecting hairs underneath the abdomen.
Nesting:Pre-existing cavities in soil or wood. Nests are lined with plant material.

Named for the way that females use their mandibles to prepare nesting material.

iNaturalist records for carder bees.

8. Mason bees (Osmia)

ID: 10-12mm, Abdominal scopae, metallic green, blue, or gold coloration.
Nesting: Cavities--hollow stems.

Mason bees are most likely in spring. They are important pollinators, sometimes actively managed by growers.

iNaturalist records for Osmia. in Washtenaw Co, MI.

9. Bumblebees (Bombus)

ID: Unmistakeable, long hair in black, yellow, or red (but rule out carpenter bee, which will have a shiny bald abdomen).
Nesting: Underground in colonies with a queen and dozens to hundreds of workers.

Unlike for most of the others on this list, the size and distinctive color patterns can get you to species-level ID. For guidance, try this field guide, or beemachine, an AI tool.

iNaturalist records for bumblebees.

10. Masked bee (Hylaeus)

ID: Tiny, brown/black, with yellow marks on legs and face.
Nesting: Hollow twigs.

Hard to recognize as a bee, as they lack scopae - they carry pollen internally. Rarely noticed, but in our 2026 study masked bees were the commonest bee on golden alexander.

iNaturalist records for masked bees. in Washtenaw Co, MI.