Green sweat bees will lick the sweat from human skin
Check out this metallic green pollinator. As the name suggests, this green colored bee is attracted to human sweat, primarily for its salt content. Male and female green sweat bees will lick the sweat from human skin. These bees are also referred to as Pure Green Sweat Bees. There are other species of sweat bees, such as the bicolored striped sweat bee that Ben wrote about in 2025.
These bees are found in the eastern United States. They can be seen as far north as Quebec and as far south as Florida. They are distributed as far west as Minnesota down to Texas. If you are looking for these decorative bees, they can be found from February to November depending on where you are in the US. Green sweat bees have a longer season in the southern latitudes. Although they are easy to spot as they bounce from flower to flower, you should also look for them on the ground where they nest in rotting wood on the forest floor.
This photo was taken in Pawtuckaway State Park in New Hampshire. This is a beautiful 5,000 acre preserve in southern New Hampshire. There are more than 30 miles of hiking trails here! In the winter, some of these hiking trails convert into snowmobile trails. In the summer, there are ~200 campsites available. This park gets its name from the small ancient volcanic range that sits within the state park. There is also Pawtuckaway Lake, which is open to swimming, fishing, and paddling in the summer.
This green sweat bee is on an oxeye daisy flower. Although this is a beautiful flower, it is considered invasive here in the United States. Its native territory is Europe and Asia. It was introduced to the United States in the 1800’s. Here in the United States, some people consider this flower a problematic weed. This is because it can reproduce quickly and overtake native species. In fact, one plant can produce 26,000 seeds! To learn more about the oxeye daisy, check out our article we did on them back in 2022.
This park gets its name from the small ancient volcanic range
Did you know?
- In Florida, this species has a deep metallic blue color rather than a shiny green color.
- The female green sweat bees will overwinter, while all male green sweat bees die in the fall.
- Green sweat bees are important pollinators! They have been seen visiting over 40 different species of flowers.
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