Which Bee Is That?

Most of the buzzing visitors in a US garden are friendly, important pollinators. Here's how to tell them apart.

• Honey bee — slender, amber-and-brown striped, the size of a grain of rice; lives in managed or feral hives. Gentle while foraging.
• Bumble bee — big, round and very fuzzy, black with yellow (sometimes orange) bands. Key pollinator of tomatoes and peppers via "buzz pollination."
• Carpenter bee — looks like a bumble bee but with a shiny, hairless black abdomen; nests in wood. Mostly harmless; males can't sting.
• Mason & leafcutter bees — small, dark, often metallic; solitary, nest in hollow stems and bee hotels. Gentle and excellent pollinators.
• Sweat bees — tiny, often brilliant metallic green; attracted to perspiration but rarely sting.

Support all of them by planting flowers and skipping the sprays. More in the bees guide.