My Garden of a Thousand Bees

A story of surprise and revelation. A wildlife filmmaker spends his time during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown filming the bees in his urban garden and discovers the many diverse species and personalities that exist in this insect family.

This construction of grass stems takes bee architecture to new heights. The Red-Tailed Mason bee, nicknamed the Tent-Making bee, has solved the problem of other bees breaking into her nursery and it starts with a shell.

There is a new bee out in the garden, and he is a "monster." This male Wool Carder bee will mate with any female and chase away any male that comes into his territory.

In the "bee highway," male bees search for female bees to mate with. When this male bee spots a female, he becomes transfixed and does a bit of a dance.

Everyone has heard of honeybees, but what about the 4,000 species of wild, native bees that live alongside honey bees here in North America? These lesser-known, but equally industrious insects not only pollinate our crops but also support healthy, diverse ecosystems across the continent. Unfortunately, many of these native bee species are in trouble.