About BeeMachine

BeeMachine was developed by Brian Spiesman in collaboration with:

Claudio Gratton, University of Wisconsin - Madison

William Hsu, Kansas State University

Brian McCornack Kansas State University

About BeeMachine

Support

BeeMachine was funded by USDA NIFA, the National Science Foundation, and Kansas State University. Computer vision models were developed with open data from the Global Biodiversity Infrastructure Facility (GBIF), our own imaging efforts, and data contributed by community science projects including the Wisconsin Bumble Bee Brigade, the Hanamaru Maruhana Project , and the Vi Un Abejorro (I Saw a Bumble Bee) project. We are grateful to the organizers and volunteer participants of these programs that share their images and taxonomic expertise. Images were also provided by Jerry Cole and from ongoing collaborations with the KU Biodiversity Institue and Natural History Museum and the USDA ARS Pollinating Insect-Biology, Management, and Systematics Research Unit.

Our Computer Vision Model

Our Computer Vision Model

BeeMachine is able to identify bee species from around the world. But if it isn't sure about the species it will give a genus-level prediction. Because flowers are often visited by other kinds of insects that can sometimes be confused with bees, we now include the ability to differentiate bees from wasps, flies, beetles, and butterflies/moths. Overall test accuracy on the current algorithm is 93.7% (99.4% top-3) but this varies by species depending on the number of training images and their level of morphological variability (see figures below). BeeMachine uses a convolutional neural network, modified from EfficientNetV2, and was trained on over 1.2 million images.

Learned Features

Neural networks learn their own set of features in images to differentiate species. Each point in this visualization represents a test image. Images with similar learned features are close together, forming clusters that correspond well with species. Thus learned features parallel real life qualities that we use to differentiate species.

Learned Features
Model Precision

Model Precision

The number of training images per species is important! More images per species means we can cover a larger range of variability in lighting, pose, background context, and variability in appearance, which increases the likelihood of a correct prediction. In this figure each point represents a different species. We can use this information to target particular species for acquiring more images to improve the classification model.

BeeMachine can recognize 354 kinds of flower visiting insects. This includes 221 bee species, 128 bee genera, and other kinds of insects like wasps, flies, hoverflies, beetles, and butterflies/moths.

Acamptopoeum sp.


Alloscirtetica sp.


Andrena sp.


Andrena clarkella


Andrena erigeniae


Andrena haemorrhoa


Andrena nigroaenea


Andrena vaga


Anthidium sp.


Anthidium oblongatum

Anthophora abrupta


Anthophora furcata


Anthophora retusa


Anthophorula sp.


Apis florea


Augochlora sp.


Bombus affinis

Bombus argillaceus 


Bombus baltatus


Bombus bicoloratus 


Bombus borealis


Bombus campestris 


Bombus coccineus


Bombus cryptarum


Bombus distinguendus


Bombus fervidus


Bombus fragrans


Bombus griseocollis


Bombus hortorum


Bombus hyperboreus


Bombus impatiens


Bombus koreanus


Bombus lucorum


Bombus melanopygus


Bombus mixtus


Bombus morrisoni


Bombus norvegicus


Bombus pascuorum


Bombus perplexus


Bombus pullatus


Bombus quadricolor


Bombus ruderatus


Bombus semenoviellus


Bombus soroeensis


Bombus sylvarum


Bombus terrestris


Bombus vagans/sandersoni


Bombus veteranus


Bombus wilmattae


Braunsapis sp.


Camptopoeum sp.


Ceylalictus sp.


Coleoptera sp.


Colletes inaequalis


Diadasia sp.


Diphaglossa gayi


Epeolus sp.


Eucera sp.


Eulaema sp.


Exoneura sp.


Habropoda sp.


Halictus scabiosae


Holcopasites sp.


Hylaeus modestus


Leioproctus sp.


Lithurgus sp.


Megachile sp.


Megachile pugnata


Melecta sp.


Melissodes desponsus


Melitturga sp.


Micralictoides sp.


Nomia sp.


Osmia bicolor


Osmia lignaria


Palaeorhiza sp.


Paranthidium sp.


Peponapis sp.


Protoxaea sp.


Pseudopanurgus sp.


Rophites sp.


Stelis sp.


Systropha sp.


Thygater sp.


Triepeolus sp.


Xylocopa augusti


Xylocopa latipes


Xylocopa tabaniformis


Zacosmia maculata

Agapostemon sp.


Amegilla sp.


Andrena barbilabris


Andrena denticulata


Andrena flavipes


Andrena hattorfiana


Andrena nitida


Andrena ventralis


Anthidium florentinum


Anthidium punctatum


Anthophora bimaculata


Anthophora pacifica


Anthophora terminalis


Apis sp.


Apis laboriosa


Augochlorella sp.


Bombus alpinus

Bombus asiaticus


Bombus barbutellus 


Bombus bifarius 


Bombus brasiliensis 


Bombus centralis


Bombus confusus 


Bombus cullumanus


Bombus diversus


Bombus flavidus


Bombus fraternus


Bombus haematurus 


Bombus hortulanus


Bombus hypnorum


Bombus insularis


Bombus laesus


Bombus magnus


Bombus melanurus


Bombus modestus


Bombus muscorum


Bombus occidentalis


Bombus patagiatus


Bombus picipes


Bombus pyrenaeus


Bombus robustus


Bombus rufocinctus


Bombus sichelii


Bombus sporadicus


Bombus sylvestris


Bombus terricola


Bombus vancouverensis


Bombus volucelloides


Bombus wurflenii


Cadeguala sp.


Caupolicana sp.


Chalepogenus sp.


Colletes sp.


Corynura sp.


Dianthidium sp.


Diptera sp.


Epicharis sp.


Eufriesea sp.


Euryglossa sp.


Exoneuridia sp.


Halictus sp.


Halictus tripartitus


Hoplitis sp.


Hyleoides sp.


Lepidoptera sp.


Macropis sp.


Megachile ericetorum


Megachile sculpturalis


Meliponini sp.


Melissoptila sp.


Mellitidia sp.


Nomada sp.


Nomioides sp.


Osmia bicornis


Othinosmia sp.


Panurginus sp.


Paratetrapedia sp.


Perdita sp.


Pseudapis sp.


Ptiloglossa sp.


Ruizantheda sp.


Svastra sp.


Tetralonia sp.


Thyreus sp.


Wasp
Xenoglossa sp.


Xylocopa caffra


Xylocopa micans


Xylocopa tenuiscapa


Agapostemon splendens


Amphylaeus sp.


Andrena bicolor


Andrena dorsata


Andrena florea


Andrena hirticincta


Andrena nubecula


Andrena wilkella


Anthidium maculosum


Anthidium septemspinosum


Anthophora bomboides


Anthophora plumipes


Anthophora urbana


Apis cerana


Apis mellifera


Augochloropsis sp.

Bombus appositus

Bombus atripes


Bombus beaticola


Bombus bimaculatus 


Bombus californicus 


Bombus cingulatus 


Bombus consobrinus


Bombus dahlbomii


Bombus ephippiatus


Bombus flavifrons


Bombus frigidus


Bombus hedini


Bombus humilis


Bombus hypocrita


Bombus jonellus


Bombus lapidarius


Bombus mckayi


Bombus mesomelas


Bombus monticola


Bombus nevadensis


Bombus opifex


Bombus pauloensis


Bombus pratorum


Bombus pyrosoma


Bombus rubicundus


Bombus rupestris


Bombus sitkensis


Bombus steindachneri


Bombus sylvicola


Bombus transversalis


Bombus vandykei


Bombus vosnesenskii


Bombus zonatus    

Calliopsis sp.


Centris sp.


Chelostoma sp.


Colletes cunicularius


Dasypoda sp.


Dieunomia sp.


Dufourea sp.
E

Ericrocis sp.


Euglossa sp.


Exaerete sp.


Florilegus sp.


Halictus ligatus


Heriades sp.


Hylaeus sp.


Icteranthidium sp.


Lipotriches sp.


Macrotera sp.


Megachile latimanus


Megachile xylocopoides


Melissodes sp.


Melitoma sp.


Meroglossa sp.


Nomada goodeniana


Notanthidium sp.


Osmia caerulescens


Oxaea sp.


Panurgus sp.


Pasites sp.


Protandrena sp.


Pseudaugochlora sp.


Ptilothrix sp.


Scrapter sp.


Syntrichalonia sp.


Tetraloniella sp.


Trachusa sp.


Xylocopa sp.


Xylocopa californica


Xylocopa pubescens


Xylocopa violacea


Agapostemon virescens


Ancylandrena sp.


Andrena cineraria


Andrena dunningi


Andrena fulva


Andrena milwaukeensis


Andrena prunorum


Anthidiellum sp.


Anthidium manicatum


Anthophora sp.


Anthophora californica


Anthophora quadrimaculata


Anthophora villosula


Apis dorsata

Ashmeadiella sp.


Bombus sp.

Bombus ardens


Bombus auricomus


Bombus bellicosus 


Bombus bohemicus 


Bombus caliginosus 


Bombus citrinus


Bombus crotchii


Bombus deuteronymus


Bombus eximius


Bombus formosellus


Bombus funebris


Bombus honshuensis


Bombus huntii


Bombus ignitus


Bombus kirbiellus 


Bombus lapponicus


Bombus medius


Bombus mexicanus


Bombus morio


Bombus niveatus


Bombus opulentus


Bombus pensylvanicus


Bombus pseudobaicalensis


Bombus pyrrhopygus


Bombus ruderarius


Bombus schrencki


Bombus sonani


Bombus subterraneus


Bombus ternarius


Bombus ussurensis


Bombus vestalis


Bombus weisi


Brachymelecta sp.


Callomelitta sp.


Ceratina sp.


Coelioxys sp.


Colletes hederae


Dasypoda hirtipes


Dioxys sp.


peoloides sp.


Euaspis sp.


Euhesma sp.


Exomalopsis sp.


Gaesischia sp.


Halictus rubicundus

Hesperapis sp.


Hylaeus leptocephalus


Lasioglossum sp.


Lithurgopsis sp.


Manuelia sp.


Megachile perihirta


Megandrena sp.


Melissodes bimaculatus


Melitta sp.


Mesocheira bicolor


Nomada lathburiana


Osmia sp.


Osmia cornuta


Pachyprosopis sp.

Paragapostemon coelestinus


Patellapis sp.


Protosmia sp.


Pseudoanthidium sp.


Rhodanthidium sp.


Sphecodes sp.


Syrphidae sp.


Thalestria sp.


Trichocolletes sp.


Xylocopa aestuans


Xylocopa flavorufa


Xylocopa sonorina


Xylocopa virginica