Honey bees in Alaska
Yes — honey bees are recorded in Alaska. The GBIF biodiversity database holds 544 verified honey bee records from the state — ranking it 48th nationally. Sightings concentrate in May to August. Onset: immediate sharp pain. Duration: swelling up to several days.
| Verified records | 544 |
|---|---|
| Peak sightings | May to August |
| State bite season | May to September |
| Active | daytime |
| Habitat | flowering lawns and gardens; hives in trees, walls and managed apiaries |
| Bite appears | immediate sharp pain |
Honey bee bites in Alaska: what the mark looks like
The barbed stinger left in the skin is diagnostic — no wasp does this. Because removing it takes seconds and venom keeps being pumped, speed matters more than technique, and scraping is better than pinching.
Locally, the species most often confused with it are bald-faced hornet sting, black fly bite — all of which are also recorded in Alaska.
Seek medical care if
Call emergency services now for difficulty breathing, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, dizziness or fainting, or hives spreading away from the bite.
- breathing difficulty, throat or tongue swelling, faintness, hives away from the sting — emergency
- a previous severe reaction to a sting
- many stings at once
Honey bee season in Alaska specifically
Records in Alaska concentrate in May to August, which is what local sighting data shows rather than a national average — seasonality shifts substantially with latitude. The general bite season in Alaska runs May to September.
Because flowering lawns and gardens, exposure in Alaska tends to be concentrated in specific places rather than spread evenly — which is why a bite history ("where were you in the 24 hours before?") narrows the answer faster than the appearance of the mark.
Month by month in Alaska
These are the 544 Alaska records broken out by the month they were recorded — not a national curve redrawn for the state. Records appear in 10 of the 12 months here. The single busiest month is July with 143 records (29% of the state total).
| Month | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1 | <1% |
| March | 1 | <1% |
| April | 17 | 3% |
| May | 85 | 17% |
| June | 113 | 23% |
| July | 143 | 29% |
| August | 113 | 23% |
| September | 17 | 3% |
| October | 3 | <1% |
| December | 1 | <1% |
Counts are observations submitted to GBIF, not bites. They tell you when the animal is out and being noticed in Alaska; they do not tell you how many people were bitten. The thinnest month with any record at all is January (1).
How Alaska compares
Across the 51 states with any honey bee records, Alaska ranks 48th with 544. The state directly above it is Montana (559). Directly below is South Dakota (430). The highest count anywhere is California (83,258).
Inside Alaska itself the picture is different again: of the 9 biting species we track with records here, this one is 1st and accounts for 54% of the 1,009 records logged in the state. A species can be common nationally and marginal in one state, or the reverse — which is the whole reason this page exists separately from the national guide.
Care
- scrape the stinger out sideways with a card or fingernail immediately — do not pinch it, that squeezes the venom sac
- wash and apply a cold pack
- antihistamine and pain relief
- adrenaline auto-injector if prescribed
Avoiding honey bees in Alaska
- shoes on in clover and flowering lawns
- stay calm and move away slowly rather than swatting
- no strong floral fragrance when working in the garden
Questions
Are there honey bees in Alaska?
Yes. Alaska accounts for 544 verified records in GBIF, ranking it 48th among the 51 states with any records for this species, just behind Montana (559). Within Alaska it is 1st of the 9 biting species we track here, at 54% of the state's records. Records reflect reporting effort as well as abundance.
When are honey bees active in Alaska?
Alaska records peak in May to August. The general bite season in Alaska runs May to September.
What does the bite look like?
a white raised centre in a red swollen area, with the barbed stinger often still in the skin, red with a pale centre. Single.
Which month has the most sightings in Alaska?
July, with 143 of the 544 Alaska records (29%). Records appear in 10 of the 12 months here. This counts sightings submitted to GBIF, not bites.
Get a photo assessment in the app
Everything above is free to read. The app adds what a page cannot: point your camera at the bite and get an assessment of the most likely cause, a severity read, and a day-by-day care plan — including the specific signs that mean you should be seen.
Download on the App Store — free
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