We're committed to supporting the local honey bee population and educating our community about the importance of bees. 

    Name a Honey Bee

    Help us name 100 bees! You can keep our honey bees buzzing by naming one of your own - Join the effort to preserve the beehive at Long Island Children's Museum by participating in our Name a Honey Bee Campaign. With a donation of $10, each contributor will have their own graphic honey bee display, which includes both its new name and its donor’s name. In addition, donors will be listed on our website through the end of the year. You can find these graphic bees hovering around The Hive studio behind our Feasts for Beasts exhibit, welcoming guests and raising awareness of the importance of honey bees in our environment. See the list of all of our Name a Honey Bee Donors below! Join the effort by naming your honey bee today!

    Name a Honey Bee

    Where Can You See LICM's Bees?

    The Hive, located behind our Feasts for Beasts gallery, features a large indoor observation bee hive, home to more than 20,000 bees. The observation hive is housed between large sheets of plexi-glass where we can watch the bees hard at work building combs, filling them with honey and tending to the Queen. The space is illuminated with red light to enable viewing with minimal impact on the bees' natural behavior. The bees can come and go at will through a tube connecting the hive to the outside world.

    A photograph of an LICM staff member showing the Honey Bee's exhibit to a visiting family.

    Through the observational hive, visitors learn how bees collect pollen, make honey and that honey bees are responsible for some of our favorite foods.

    Honey bees are vital to our ecosystem and our food supply. Unfortunately, the honey bee population is decreasing rapidly worldwide due to a serious threat called colony collapse disorder. Without enough honey bees, our fruit and vegetable crops will disappear! We can help these important creatures through education and supporting bee colonies.

    Did you know?

    • Through pollination, honey bees help local gardens grow flowers, fruits and vegetables.  
    • Honey bees have five eyes, four wings, six legs, and two stomachs (one for food, one for nectar). 
    • Honey bees pollinate some of Long Island’s most abundant crops including melons, pumpkins, tree nuts and berries.  
    • Many farms all over the country would not be able to survive without honey bees and we would lose some of our favorite foods such as cherries, apples and almonds. 

    What can you do?

    • Plant wildflowers in your own backyard.  
    • Avoid pesticides and chemicals to treat your lawn – they will get into the nectar and pollen which can harm the bees. 
    • Consider buying honey from ethically sourced suppliers. 
    • Participate in LICM's Name a Honey Bee Campaign!

    Thank you to our Name a Honey Bee Donors!

    Current as of 11/26/24

    Alessandro
    Alyson and Finn
    Anonymous
    Sam Bowker
    Julian C.    
    The Castillo Family
    Chelsea
    Daniel and Herson
    The DeVito Family
    Dr. Diane's Adventures in Learning
    Ella and Eoih
    Emma, James, and Pietra
    Chelsea English
    Luke Falsetta
    Katie Farkas
    Erika Floreska
    Girl Scout Troop #1395
    Isabella, GS Cadette Troop 1383
    Jacob
    Joslyn
    Kali
    The Lemus Family
    Jennifer Martin
    The Matos Family
    The Mendoza Family
    Mia
    Mina & Co.
    Madeline Murphy
    The Rhoads Family
    Jayden Romero
    Matthew Romero
    Emil Sabu
    Cynthia Seibold
    The Sharpe Family
    Frances Sheng
    Spencer
    Ava Tilleli
    Cesar Vasquez
    Corrie and Glenn Willis
    Kyra Z.
    Zatanna
    Zoey