Soybean: bees and pollination
Without pollinators, soybean loses a noticeable part of its yield.
How much of the yield depends on pollinators
Modest: 10 to 40% yield loss without pollinators (10-39%)
Without pollinators, soybean loses a noticeable part of its yield.
Loss without pollinators: 10 to 39 percent
The classification comes from the PLLNT11 dataset of the EU Pollinator Hub, based on Klein and others (2007). It is a range for the crop as a whole; varieties and growing methods can differ, for example self-pollinating varieties or greenhouse growing with bumblebees.
Which bees visit soybean
3 bee species have been recorded on this crop, in 26 records of flower visits. None of them is listed as threatened on the European Red List.
| Bee | Group | Red List Europe | Flies | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honey beeApis mellifera | Honey bees | - Not assessed | Dec - Aug | 22 |
| Lasioglossum laticeps | Lasioglossum | LC Least concern | Apr - Aug | 2 |
| Lasioglossum villosulum | Lasioglossum | LC Least concern | May - Sep | 2 |
Scale, from severe to not threatened: CR critically endangered, EN endangered, VU vulnerable, NT near threatened, LC least concern. DD: data deficient.
When the visitors fly
Number of species flying per month, according to the flight calendar from open records in Europe. A species counts in every month it flies.
Sources
This page only uses sources with an open licence. The bee database itself contains more records, from sources for which permission is still pending.
- Vliegperiode per maand, afgeleid uit BeeBDC-waarnemingen met open licentie (CC0 / CC BY)
FairGrow (afgeleid) · version 1.3.4 · licence CC BY 4.0 (afgeleid uit CC0 / CC BY)
Afgeleid door FairGrow uit: Dorey, J. B. et al. (2023). A globally synthesised and flagged bee occurrence dataset and cleaning workflow. Scientific Data 10: 747. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02626-w. Cleaned database v1.3.4 (2024-02-15), Figshare. Kleinste maandvenster met 90% van de waarnemingen, minimaal 20 records.
doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02626-w - Bij-plantinteracties: EuPPollNet via GloBI (CC BY 4.0)
GloBI / Big Bee · version 7.0 · licence CC BY 4.0
Lanuza, J. B. et al. (2025). EuPPollNet: a European database of plant-pollinator networks. Zenodo 10.5281/zenodo.15183272 (CC BY 4.0), via Seltmann, K. et al. / Big Bee project and GloBI (2025). Global Bee Interaction Data v7.0. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17957582. Underlying data: Global Biotic Interactions (Poelen et al. 2014).
doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17957582 - European Red List of Bees (2026), Appendix 1: Red List status at Pan-Europe and EU27 levels
Publications Office of the European Union / IUCN · version 2026 · licence CC BY 4.0
Michez, D. et al. (2026). European Red List of Bees. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2779/521877 (CC BY 4.0). Appendix 1.
doi.org/10.2779/521877 - Wikidata: taxon common names (P1843) and labels of bee species
Wikimedia Foundation / Wikidata · version SPARQL 2026-10-18 · licence CC0 1.0
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, taxon common names (P1843) and labels, retrieved 2026-10-18. https://www.wikidata.org (CC0).
www.wikidata.org - EU Pollinator Hub PLLNT11.0.0 Pollination: dependency of crops on animal pollination
EU Pollinator Hub (EFSA / BeeLife), Zenodo · version PLLNT11.0.0 · licence CC BY 4.0
Rubinigg, M. (2023). Pollination (PLLNT11.0.0). EU Pollinator Hub. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18008331 (CC BY 4.0). Based on Klein, A.-M. et al. (2007). Proc. R. Soc. B 274: 303-313. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2006.3721
doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18008331
Bee groups on this crop
Crops with the same dependence
Which bees fly around your field?
In the FairGrow bee database you see the species in the cells around your own fields and apiaries, with flight weather and forage landscape.