North Carolina Bee School Practice Exam

Which of the following statements is true regarding bees' geographic origin?

1. They originated in Africa

2. They originated in Asia

3. They originated in Europe

4. They originated in Australia

The correct answer is: They originated in Asia

Bees are believed to have originated in Asia. The fossil record indicates that the earliest known bees date back to approximately 100 million years ago during the Cretaceous period, and many significant developments in bee evolution occurred in what is now modern-day Asia. This region provided the diverse flowering plants that bees co-evolved with, which is crucial for their survival and the development of the various species we see today. In contrast, while Africa, Europe, and Australia all have their own unique species of bees, they are considered to be part of a later distribution and diversification of bees as they spread from their point of origin in Asia. The geographic distribution and environmental changes throughout history have allowed bees to adapt and thrive in many parts of the world, but their ancestral roots trace back primarily to Asia.