PHOENIX — Arizona leads the world for the highest concentration of bee species and it starts with the San Bernardino Valley.
Straddling the border of southeastern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico, this area is a hotbed of bee activity. After rain rolls through the region, namely in the late summer monsoons, the area explodes with wildflowers which bring an abundance of bee life.
According to the National Geographic reports, this flora and fauna relationship has triggered the highest concentration of bee species worldwide.
There are more than 470 bee species, which is a remarkable 14% of the known bee fauna in the United States. This power-packed concentration garnered San Bernardino Valley the title of the World’s highest concentration of bee species, according to the World Record Academy.
In a recent paper published in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research, wildlife experts found 497 species of bees live within just over six square miles of the valley. The experts report the density of bees in this area is astronomical, far and away higher than anywhere else in the world.
The study also found more than 90% of the insects researchers found were solitary species. Meaning, they had no hive or nest mates. They also found many different sizes and colors of bees. Including, the tiniest American bee, known as Perdita minima, is about the size of the word “trust” on a U.S. quarter.
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