The United Nations created World Bee Day to raise awareness of these pollinators and the threats they face. The honey bee may get all the glory, but there are 400-500 species of bees native to Illinois. 

The world’s largest hornet, a 2-inch killer dubbed the “Murder Hornet” with an appetite for honey bees, has been found in Washington state, where entomologists were making plans to wipe it out.

It’s a job as old as time, but one Chicagoan is beekeeping in her own unique way. Meet graphic designer-turned-beekeeper Jana Kinsman.

It’s been a rough few decades for the rusty patched bumblebee. Once widespread in Illinois and throughout much of the U.S., the species has lost nearly 90% of its population over the past 20 years.

Pollinating animals account for an estimated one out of every three bites of food humans eat. “Bees & Beyond” explains how the process works, traces its evolutionary history and demonstrates its impact on our daily lives.

Behind barbed wire fences, Cook County Jail inmates grow vegetables, flowers, herbs, and – as of May – they’re harvesting honey from two beehives provided by a former inmate.

Slight increases in temperature could lead to the extinction of bees in southwestern states in the near future, according to a new study from Northwestern University and the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Dan Parizek is a “Honeybee Rescuer." If you’ve got a beehive in the walls of your home, Dan will relocate it so it won’t be destroyed by an exterminator. With Colony Collapse Disorder destroying some 10 million beehives since 2007, Dan and others say we can’t afford to lose any more hives. Jay Shefsky has a profile. Read an article, watch a web extra video, and learn more about Colony Collapse Disorder from local scientists.

Dr. Corrie Moreau, Assistant Curator of Insects at the Field Museum and Karen Kramer Wilson, Living Invertebrate Specialist at The Chicago Academy of Sciences and Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, share their thoughts on the impact of Bee Colony Collapse Disorder.

Bee hives, hand cream and O'Hare Airport. We show you how one social enterprise is utilizing the sweet nectar of honey to give its employees a fresh start.

Beekeeping in Chicago is legal, relatively easy and increasingly popular. We take a look at the largely unseen world of rooftop bees, and the people who care for them.