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The Augochloropsis anonyma looks like a weird bee. It’s got that familiar bee shape—tilted abdomen, oblong eyes—but its body fuzz is white, instead of yellow; its eyes are white; and its skin is iridescent jade-aqua-blue-purple. It has all the colors of an oil puddle in the sun.

Yet the real weirdos are our familiar yellow-and-black honeybees, says U.S. Geological Survey biologist Sam Droege. The Augochloropsis is one of 4,000 bee species native to the U.S. Honeybees, on the other hand, are more recent settlers that European farmers brought to America in the 1600s. Surveys done in the past few years have found that both types of bees contribute to pollinating U.S. crops, with native bees playing an especially important role for American plants such as pumpkins, blueberries and tomatoes.

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Droege considers honeybees weird because their habits differ from those of most native bees, which tend to be solitary or “primitively colonial,” Droege says. “The whole multi-year queen, waggle dance, hive, honey, etc. are absent from our native species,” he wrote to Popular Science in an email. Only native bumblebees, which comprise about 40 species in North America, have a formal colonial social structure with workers and queens.

Honey- and bumblebees’ social structures mean people are able to cultivate them in hives and drive them around to places that need them. They’re especially important in industrial farmlands, such as those in central California, where there’s little habitat left for native bees.

Fields on the East Coast and others that are surrounded by some native plants, however, may be pollinated partly or mostly by native bees. In 2009, researchers studied 11 apple farms in New York State and found 81 species of native bees. Small farms could depend entirely on native bees, though larger farms required honeybees. The natives may be especially effective at pollinating foods native to the Americas, including cherries and cranberries.

Another major difference between native and honeybees is that the natives don’t suffer from colony collapse disorder, a mysterious condition that’s killed off, on average, one-third of domestic honeybee colonies every year since 2006. That’s because native bees don’t suffer from the same pests and viruses that honeybees do and they don’t have the same social order, Droege says. Nevertheless, native bees may be threatened by pesticide residues, but that hasn’t been well studied, Droege says.

The U.S. Geological Survey has set up a program to capture and record bee species all over the continent. The survey will ramp up this winter to include 50 collection sites. Droege hopes to collect enough data to know whether native bee populations are rising or falling. In the meanwhile, he and his collectors have gotten great photos of Augochloropsis and other weird natives. Check them out above.

Correction: This article originally listed eggplant as an example of a plant that’s native to the Americas and better pollinated by native bee. Eggplants are not native to the Americas. However, they do require bumblebees to pollinate them. Domestic honeybees don’t make the correct movements eggplant flowers need. I apologize for the error.

Covered in pollen. From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Halictus ligatus, Female

Covered in pollen. From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Collected in Badlands National Park in South Dakota

Anthophora affabilis, Female

Collected in Badlands National Park in South Dakota
The <em>Augochloropsis anonyma</em> is native to the southeastern U.S. This specimen was collected in Miami-Dade, Florida.

Augochloropsis anonyma, Male

The Augochloropsis anonyma is native to the southeastern U.S. This specimen was collected in Miami-Dade, Florida.
This fuzzy buzzer, collected in Anne Andrel County, Maryland, likes dry, sandy areas.

Melissodes dentiventris, Female

This fuzzy buzzer, collected in Anne Andrel County, Maryland, likes dry, sandy areas.
A white clover flower from a Beltsville, Maryland lawn

Trifolium repens

A white clover flower from a Beltsville, Maryland lawn
An early spring bee species, often found in maple trees. This little gal, collected by a homeowner in Bowie, Maryland, is dusted with pollen.

Andrena fenningeri, Female

An early spring bee species, often found in maple trees. This little gal, collected by a homeowner in Bowie, Maryland, is dusted with pollen.
Collected in Wake County, North Carolina

Svastra petulca, Male

Collected in Wake County, North Carolina
This may be the first record of this bee species in a century, Droege says. He found this specimen in Washington County, Maryland.

Macropis ciliata, Female

This may be the first record of this bee species in a century, Droege says. He found this specimen in Washington County, Maryland.
Dark blue _Augochlorella aurata_s, like this one, often live in coastal areas and the Deep South. This specimen was collected in Camden County, Georgia.

Augochlorella aurata, No Sex Indicated

Dark blue _Augochlorella aurata_s, like this one, often live in coastal areas and the Deep South. This specimen was collected in Camden County, Georgia.
This bee lives in Brooklyn, New York, like me.

Andrena nasonii, Male

This bee lives in Brooklyn, New York, like me.
Collected in Badlands National Park in South Dakota. Can't get enough of these photos, or want some higher-resolution versions for yourself? These pictures and more are free to use from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/usgsbiml/">Droege's Flickr photostream</a>.

Dianthidium curvatum, Male

Collected in Badlands National Park in South Dakota. Can’t get enough of these photos, or want some higher-resolution versions for yourself? These pictures and more are free to use from Droege’s Flickr photostream.