Bee tending a honeycomb (© Simun Ascic/Alamy)
We're really buzzing: Today is World Bee Day, a chance to celebrate these industrious insects and the vital role they play in biodiversity and agriculture. Bees come in a range of sizes, from just 0.08 inches all the way up to 2.5 inches, and there are over 20,000 known species. One of the most important pollinators, they help keep trees, flowers, and crops alive, helping to secure food chains as well as boosting biodiversity. It's no overstatement to say that bees are vital for humans' survival.
Honey bees, like the one in today's image, construct nests from wax and produce honey to sustain the colony through the winter months. Humans have been keeping bees in artificial hives for around 10,000 years.