Pollen laden Bee

It is incredible the amount of pollen a bee can pack onto it's abdomen. Your picture is a very good example of this and most welcome addition to the group. Evidently bees gather pollen in the first part of summer and later on they concentrate on collecting nectar for the hive as a food source. Thus the bee would be pollinating flowers and crops in Spring and early summer to a greater degree simply because it is gathering pollen and has more pollen on its body, so transferring it to plants as it hops from plant to plant. Later in summer when they collect nectar there is less pollen transference and therefore less pollination happening.