The Apinae are the
subfamily
In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...
that includes the majority of
bee
Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyly, monophyletic lineage within the ...
s in the family
Apidae. It includes the familiar "
corbiculate" (pollen basket) bees—
bumblebees,
honey bees,
orchid bees,
stingless bees,
Africanized bee
The Africanized bee, also known as the Africanized honey bee and known colloquially as the "killer bee", is a hybrid of the western honey bee (''Apis mellifera''), produced originally by crossbreeding of the East African lowland honey bee (''A. ...
s, and the extinct genus ''
Euglossopteryx''.
It also includes all but two of the groups (excluding
Nomadinae
Nomadinae is a subfamily of bees in the family Apidae. They are known commonly as cuckoo bees.
This subfamily is entirely kleptoparasitic. They occur worldwide, and use many different types of bees as hosts. As parasites, they lack a pollen-car ...
and
Xylocopinae) that were previously classified in the family
Anthophoridae
Apidae is the largest family within the superfamily Apoidea, containing at least 5700 species of bees. The family includes some of the most commonly seen bees, including bumblebees and honey bees, but also includes stingless bees (also used for ...
.
Most species in the subfamily (other than honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees) are solitary, though several of the
tribes are entirely
kleptoparasitic, such as the
Ericrocidini
The Ericrocidini are a tribe of apid bees.
Genera
*'' Acanthopus''
*'' Aglaomelissa''
*'' Ctenioschelus''
*'' Epiclopus''
*'' Ericrocis''
*'' Hopliphora''
*'' Mesocheira''
*'' Mesonychium''
*'' Mesoplia''
References
* C. D. Michener (2000) '' ...
,
Isepeolini
The Isepeolini are a tribe of apid bees.
Genera
*'' Isepeolus''
*'' Melectoides''
References
* C. D. Michener (2000) ''The Bees of the World'', Johns Hopkins University Press.
Apinae
Bee tribes
{{Apinae-stub ...
,
Melectini
The Melectini are a tribe of medium- to large-sized apid bees found essentially worldwide. They are brood parasites of the related typical digger bees (Anthophorini) and occasionally visit flowers e.g. in prairie landscapes of the United Stat ...
,
Osirini
The Osirini are a tribe of cleptoparasitic apid bees, all but one genus exclusively from the Neotropics, and laying their eggs in the nests of bees in the apid tribe Tapinotaspidini; the one exceptional genus is ''Epeoloides'', which has one N ...
,
Protepeolini, and
Rhathymini.
Behaviors
Certain behaviors are known from members of the Apinae that are rarely seen in other bees, including the habit of males forming "sleeping aggregations" on vegetation - several males gathering on a single plant in the evening, grasping a plant with their jaws and resting there through the night (sometimes held in place only by the jaws, with the legs dangling free in space).
Also known from Apinae is the habit of gathering floral oils instead of
pollen
Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...
for use as a larval food; this behavior is otherwise known only from a few lineages in the family
Melittidae.
References
External links
BugGuide.Net: Subfamily Apinae—Honey, Bumble, Long-horned, Orchid, and Digger Bees— Images by tribe
{{Taxonbar, from=Q37204
Bee subfamilies