Apidae is the largest family within the superfamily

Apoidea The superfamily Apoidea is a major group (of over 30 000 species) within the Hymenoptera, which includes two traditionally recognized lineages, the "sphecoid" wasps, and the bees. Molecular phylogeny demonstrates that the bees arose from ...

, containing at least 5700 species 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 monophyletic lineage within the superfamil ...

s. The family includes some of the most commonly seen bees, including

bumblebee A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only Extant taxon, extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct r ...

s and

honey bee A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to mainland Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the ...

s, but also includes

stingless bee Stingless bees (SB), sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of bees (from about 462 to 552 described species), comprising the Tribe (biology), tribe Meliponini (or subtribe Meliponina according to other aut ...

s (also used for honey production),

carpenter bee Carpenter bees are species in the genus ''Xylocopa'' of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant m ...

orchid bees The tribe Euglossini, in the subfamily Apinae, commonly known as orchid bees or euglossine bees, are the only group of corbiculate bees whose non-parasitic members do not all possess eusocial behavior. Description, distribution, and behavior ...

cuckoo bees The term cuckoo bee is used for a variety of different bee lineages which have evolved the kleptoparasitic behaviour of laying their eggs in the nests of other bees, reminiscent of the behavior of cuckoo birds. The name is perhaps best applied to ...

, and a number of other less widely known groups.BugGuide.Net: the Family Apidae (of bees)
. accessed 6.23.2013 Many are valuable

pollinator A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female carpel, stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are ...

s in natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

s and for agricultural

crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. In other words, a crop is a plant or plant product that is grown for a specific purpose such as food, Fiber, fibre, or fuel. When plants of the same spe ...

s. ichener, Charles D. (2007) ''The bees of the world''. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore, Londres./ref>

Taxonomy

In addition to its historical classification (honey bees, bumble bees, stingless bees and orchid bees), the family Apidae presently includes all the genera formerly placed in the families Anthophoridae and

Ctenoplectridae The bee tribe Ctenoplectrini of the subfamily Apinae, with the two genera ''Ctenoplectra'' and ''Ctenoplectrina'', comprises 9 species in tropical Africa, 10 in Asia, and 1 in Australia. Description The Ctenoplectrini are characterised by sho ...

. Although the most visible members of Apidae are social, the vast majority of apid bees are solitary, including a number of

kleptoparasitic Kleptoparasitism (originally spelt clepto-parasitism, meaning "parasitism by theft") is a form of feeding in which one animal deliberately takes food from another. The strategy is evolutionarily stable when stealing is less costly than direct fe ...

species. The old family Apidae contained four tribes (Apinae:

Apini A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to mainland Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the c ...

Euglossini The tribe (biology), tribe Euglossini, in the subfamily Apinae, commonly known as orchid bees or euglossine bees, are the only group of Pollen basket, corbiculate bees whose non-parasitic members do not all possess Eusociality, eusocial behavior. ...

and Bombinae:

Bombini The Bombini are a tribe of large bristly apid bees which feed on pollen or nectar. Many species are social, forming nests of up to a few hundred individuals; other species, formerly classified as ''Psithyrus'' cuckoo bees, are brood parasites of ...

Meliponini Stingless bees (SB), sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of bees (from about 462 to 552 described species), comprising the Tribe (biology), tribe Meliponini (or subtribe Meliponina according to other aut ...

) which have been reclassified as tribes of the subfamily

Apinae The Apinae are the subfamily that includes the majority of bees in the family Apidae. It includes the familiar "pollen basket, corbiculate" (pollen basket) bees—bumblebees, honey bees, euglossini, orchid bees, stingless bees, and the extinct ge ...

, along with all of the former tribes and subfamilies of Anthophoridae and the former family Ctenoplectridae, which was demoted to tribe status. The trend to move groups down in taxonomic rank has been taken further by a 2005 Brazilian classification that places all existing bee families together under the name "Apidae", but it has not been widely accepted in the literature since that time.

Subfamilies

Apinae

The subfamily

contains

orchid bee The tribe Euglossini, in the subfamily Apinae, commonly known as orchid bees or euglossine bees, are the only group of corbiculate bees whose non-parasitic members do not all possess eusocial behavior. Description, distribution, and behavior ...

s, and digger bees, among others. The bees of most

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

s placed in Apinae are solitary with nests that are simple burrows in the soil. However, honey bees, stingless bees, and bumblebees are

eusocial Eusociality ( Greek 'good' and social) is the highest level of organization of sociality. It is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping generations wit ...

or colonial. These are sometimes believed to have each developed this trait independently, and show notable differences in such characteristics as communication between workers and methods of nest construction. Tribes include: *

Ancylaini Ancylaini is a tribe of apid bees. The name was fixed by an ICZN opinion to differentiate it from the Ancylini tribe of fresh-water mollusc Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known a ...

Anthophorini The Anthophorini are a large tribe in the subfamily Apinae of the family Apidae. Species in this tribe are often referred to as digger bees, although this common name is sometimes also applied to members of the tribe Centridini. It contains over ...

Centridini The Centridini are a tribe of large apid bees, many of which possess adaptations for carrying floral oils rather than (or in addition to) pollen or nectar. The floral oils are often gathered from plants of the family Malpighiaceae, though othe ...

Ctenoplectrini The bee tribe Ctenoplectrini of the subfamily Apinae, with the two genera ''Ctenoplectra'' and ''Ctenoplectrina'', comprises 9 species in tropical Africa, 10 in Asia, and 1 in Australia. Description The Ctenoplectrini are characterised by sho ...

Emphorini The Emphorini are a tribe of apid bees. Genera *'' Alepidosceles'' *'' Diadasia'' *'' Diadasina'' **'' Diadasina'' (''Diadasina'') **'' Diadasina'' ('' Leptometriella'') *'' Meliphilopsis'' *'' Melitoma'' *'' Melitomella'' *'' Ptilothrix ...

Ericrocidini The Ericrocidini are a tribe of cuckoo bees in the family Apidae 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 bumble ...

Eucerini The Eucerini (often called longhorn bees or long-horned bees) are the most diverse tribe in the family Apidae, with over 32 genera worldwide that were previously classified as members of the family Anthophoridae. All species are solitary, though ...

* Exomalopsini * Isepeolini * Melectini *

Osirini The Osirini are a tribe of cuckoo bees in the family Apidae, 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 ha ...

Protepeolini The Protepeolini are a tribe of cuckoo bees in the family Apidae 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 bumbleb ...

Rhathymini The Rhathymini are a tribe of kleptoparasitic apid bees ("cuckoo bees"). Description The Rhathymini consists of bees typically moderate to large in size, ranging body length. Visually, scholars have compared their appearance to that of ve ...

* Tapinotaspidini *

Tarsaliini The Tarsaliini are a tribe of apine bees. They are between 7-13mm long.Engel, M.S. (2015): ''Notes on family-group names for bees; (Hymenoptera; Apoidea)''. Journal of Mellitology, No. 46Accessible at/ref> As of 2015, it only contains its type ...

Tetrapediini The Tetrapediini are a tribe of apid bees. Genera *'' Coelioxoides'' *'' Tetrapedia'' References * C. D. Michener (2000) ''The Bees of the World'', Johns Hopkins University Press. Apinae Bee tribes {{Apinae-stub ...

* Teratognathini

Nomadinae

The subfamily

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-c ...

, or cuckoo bees, has 31 genera in 10 tribes which are all

cleptoparasite Kleptoparasitism (originally spelt clepto-parasitism, meaning "parasitism by theft") is a form of feeding in which one animal deliberately takes food from another. The strategy is evolutionarily stable when stealing is less costly than direct fe ...

s in the nests of other bees. Tribes include: *

Ammobatini Ammobatini is a tribe of cuckoo bees in the family Apidae. There are about 8 genera and more than 130 described species in Ammobatini. Genera These eight genera belong to the tribe Ammobatini: * '' Ammobates'' Latreille, 1809 * '' Chiasmognathus ...

* Ammobatoidini * Biastini * Brachynomadini *

Caenoprosopidini Caenoprosopidini is a tribe of bees found in South America. The clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descen ...

Epeolini Epeolini is a tribe of cuckoo bees, a tribe of the subfamily 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 ...

* Hexepeolini *

Neolarrini Neolarrini is a tribe of cuckoo bees in the family Apidae. There are 5 genera and about 40 described species in Neolarrini, which includes the genera and species formerly included in the deprecated tribes Biastini and Townsendiellini.Bossert, Si ...

Nomadini With over 850 species, the genus ''Nomada'' is one of the largest genera in the family Apidae, and the largest genus of cuckoo bees. Cuckoo bees are so named because they enter the nests of a host and lay eggs there, stealing resources that the h ...

* Townsendiellini

Xylocopinae

The subfamily

Xylocopinae The subfamily Xylocopinae (family Apidae) occurs worldwide, and includes the large carpenter bees (tribe Xylocopini), the small carpenter bees (tribe Ceratinini), the allodapine bees (tribe Allodapini), and the relictual genus '' Manuelia'' (tr ...

, which includes

s, is considered ancestrally eusocial and many species are facultatively eusocial. However, colonies are small, usually comprising only a few females. Mikát M, Fraňková T, Benda D, Straka J (2022) Evidence of sociality in European small carpenter bees (''Ceratina''). Apidologie 53:18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-022-00931-8. The most advanced eusociality documented is in the tribe

Allodapini The Allodapini is a tribe of bees in the subfamily Xylocopinae, family Apidae. They occur throughout sub-Saharan Africa, South East Asia, and Australasia. There is also a rare genus, Exoneuridia, that occurs in isolated regions of Turkey, Iraq, ...

. Most members of this subfamily make nests in plant stems or wood. Tribes include: *

Ceratinini The cosmopolitan bee genus ''Ceratina'', often referred to as small carpenter bees, is the sole lineage of the tribe Ceratinini, and is not closely related to the more familiar carpenter bees. The genus presently contains over 300 species in 23 s ...

Manueliini ''Manuelia'' is a genus of bees in the subfamily Xylocopinae, the only genus in the tribe Manueliini. There are three species.Engel, M. S. (2012)On the classification of the bee genus ''Manuelia'' (Hymenoptera: Apidae).''Acta Entomologica Sloveni ...

Xylocopini Carpenter bees are species in the genus ''Xylocopa'' of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant ...

References

* * *

External links

BugGuide.Net: Family Apidae—Cuckoo, Carpenter, Digger, Bumble, and Honey Bees; and other bees
.
BugGuide.net: Native Bees of North America
{{Authority control Bee families

Taxonomy

Subfamilies

Apinae

Nomadinae

Xylocopinae

See also

References

External links