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Apidae

(Family)

Overview

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The Apidae are a large family of bees, comprising the common honey bees, stingless bees (which are also cultured for honey), carpenter bees, orchid bees, cuckoo bees, bumblebees, and various other less well-known groups. The family Apidae presently includes all the genera that were previously classified in the families Anthophoridae and Ctenoplectridae, and most of these are solitary species, though a few are also cleptoparasites. The four groups that were subfamilies in the old family Apidae are presently ranked as tribes within the subfamily Apinae. This trend has been taken to its extreme in a few recent classifications that place all the existing bee families together under the name "Apidae" (or, alternatively, the non-Linnaean clade "Anthophila"), but this is not a widely-accepted practice.

The subfamily Apinae contains a diversity of lineages, the majority of which are solitary, and whose nests are simple burrows in the soil. However, honey bees, stingless bees, and bumblebees are colonial (eusocial), though they are sometimes believed to have each developed this independently, and show notable differences in such things as communication between workers and methods of nest construction. Xylocopines (the subfamily which includes carpenter bees) are mostly solitary, though they tend to be gregarious, and some lineages such as the Allodapini contain eusocial species; most members of this subfamily make nests in plant stems or wood. The nomadines are all cleptoparasites in the nests of other bees.

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External links

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Media related to Apidae at Wikimedia Commons

Taxonomy

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The Family Apidae is a member of the Superfamily Apoidea. Here is the complete "parentage" of Apidae:

The Family Apidae is further organized into finer groupings including:

Genera

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Acanthopus

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Aethammobates

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Afromelecta

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Agapanthinus

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Aglae

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Aglaomelissa

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Alepidosceles

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Allodape

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Allodapula

[more]

Alloscirtetica

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Amegilla

Amegilla is a genus of bees in the tribe Anthophorini. A few species have blue metallic bands on the abdomen, and are referred to as "Blue banded bees". [more]

Ammobates

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Ammobatoides

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Ancyla

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Ancyloscelis

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Anthophora

The bee genus Anthophora is one of the largest in the family Apidae, with over 450 species worldwide in 14 different subgenera. They are most abundant and diverse in the Holarctic and African biogeographic regions. All species are solitary, though many nest in large aggregations. Nearly all species make nests in the soil, either in banks or in flat ground; the larvae develop in cells with waterproof linings and do not spin cocoons. Males commonly have pale white or yellow facial markings, and/or peculiarly modified leg armature and hairs. Anthophora individuals can be distinguished from the very similar genus Amegilla by the possession of an arolium between the tarsal claws. [more]

Anthophorula

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Apis

Apis can refer to the following: [more]

Apotrigona

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Arhysoceble

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Austroplebeia

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Axestotrigona

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Biastes

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Bombus

A bumblebee is any member of the bee genus Bombus, in the family Apidae. There are over 250 known species, existing primarily in the Northern Hemisphere although they are common in New Zealand and in the Australian state of Tasmania. [more]

Brachymelecta

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Brachynomada

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Braunsapis

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Caenonomada

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Caenoprosopina

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Caenoprosopis

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Camargoia

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Canephorula

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Celetrigona

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Cemolobus

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Centris

The Centris contains over 110 species of large apid bees occurring from Kansas to Argentina. A number of these bees possess adaptations for carrying floral oils rather than (or in addition to) pollen or nectar. [more]

Cephalotrigona

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Ceratina

The cosmopolitan genus Ceratina, often referred to as small carpenter bees, is the sole lineage of the tribe Ceratinini, and closely related to the more familiar carpenter bees. They make nests in dead wood, stems, or pith, and while many are solitary, a number are subsocial, with mothers caring for their larvae, and in a few cases where multiple females are found in a single nest, daughters or sisters may form very small, weakly eusocial colonies (where one bee forages and the other remains in the nest and lays eggs). [more]

Chalepogenus

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Chiasmognathus

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Chilimalopsis

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Cleptotrigona

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Coelioxoides

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Compsomelissa

Corbicula

Corbicula is a genus of freshwater and brackish water clams, aquatic bivalve mollusks in the family Corbiculidae, the basket clams. [more]

Crocisa

Ctenioschelus

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Ctenoplectra

Ctenoplectrina

Cubitalia

Dactylurina

Dalla

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Deltoptila

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Diadasia

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Diadasina

Doeringiella

Dolichotrigona

[more]

Duckeola

Effractapis

Elaphropoda

Epeoloides

Epeolus

[more]

Epicharis

Epicharis may be: [more]

Epiclopus

Eremapis

Ericrocis

[more]

Eucera

[more]

Eucerinoda

Eucondylops

Eufriesea

Euglossa

Eulaema

[more]

Exaerete

Exomalopsis

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Exoneura

Exoneurella

Exoneuridia

Florilegus

[more]

Friesella

Frieseomelitta

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Fur

Fur is a synonym for hair, used more in reference to non-human animals, usually mammals; particularly those with extensive body hair coverage. The term is sometimes used to refer to the body hair of an animal as a complete coat, also known as the "pelage". Fur is also used to refer to animal pelts which have been processed into leather with the hair still attached. The words fur or furry are also used, more casually, to refer to hair-like growths or formations; particularly when the subject being referred to exhibits a dense coat of fine, soft "hairs". [more]

Gaesischia

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Gaesochira

Geniotrigona

Geotrigona

[more]

Habrophorula

Habropoda

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Hamatothrix

Heterotrigona

Hexepeolus

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Holcopasites

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Homotrigona

Hopliphora

Hypotrigona

Isepeolus

Kelita

Lanthanomelissa

Leiopodus

[more]

Lepidotrigona

Lestrimelitta

Lestrimellita

Leurotrigona

Liotrigona

Lisotrigona

Lophothygater

Lophotrigona

Macrogalea

Manuelia

Martinapis

[more]

Melanempis

Melecta

[more]

Melectoides

Meliphilopsis

Meliplebeia

Melipona

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Meliponula

Melissodes

Melissoptila

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Melitoma

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Melitomella

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Meliwillea

Mesocheira

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Mesonychium

Mesoplia

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Micronychapis

Mirnapis

Monoeca

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Mourella

Nannotrigona

Nanorhathymus

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Nasutapis

Neolarra

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Neopasites

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Nogueirapis

Nomada

With over 850 species, the genus Nomada is one of the largest genera in the entire family Apidae, and the largest genus of cleptoparasitic "cuckoo bees." They occur worldwide, and utilize many different types of bees as hosts, primarily the genus Andrena. As parasites, they lack a pollen-carrying scopa, and are often extraordinarily wasp-like in appearance with red, black, yellow colors prevailing, and with smoky (infuscated) wings or wing tips. [more]

Nomiapis

Notolonia

Odontotrigona

Odyneropsis

[more]

Oreopasites

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Osirinus

Osiris

Osiris (; Greek: ?s????, also Usiris; the Egyptian language name is variously transliterated Asar, Asari, Aser, Ausar, Ausir, Wesir, Usir, Usire or Ausare) is an Egyptian god, usually identified as the god of the afterlife, the underworld and the dead. He is classically depicted as a green-skinned man with a pharaoh's beard, partially mummy-wrapped at the legs, wearing a distinctive crown with two large ostrich feathers at either side, and holding a symbolic crook and flail. [more]

Oxytrigona

Pachymelus

Pachysvastra

Paidia

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Papuatrigona

Parammobatodes

Paranomada

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Paratetrapedia

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Paratrigona

Paratrigonoides

Parepeolus

Pariotrigona

Partamona

Pasites

Peponapis

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Platysvastra

Platytrigona

Plebeia

Plebeiella

Plebeina

Proplebeia

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Protosiris

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Pseudepeolus

Psithyrus

Cuckoo bumblebees are members of the subgenus Psithyrus in the bumblebee genus Bombus. Up until recently, the 29 species of Psithyrus were considered to constitute a separate genus. They are a specialized lineage which has lost social behavior, and lost the ability to collect pollen, and are instead cleptoparasitic in the colonies of other bumblebees. Before finding and invading a host colony, a Psithyrus female (there is no caste system in these species) will feed directly from flowers. Once she has infiltrated a host colony, the Psithyrus female will kill or subdue the queen of that colony and forcibly (using pheromones and/or physical attacks) "enslave" the workers of that colony to feed her and her developing young. When the young emerge, they leave the colony to mate, and the females seek out other nests to attack. [more]

Ptilothrix

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Ptilotrigona

Rhathymus

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Rhinepeolus

Rhogepeolus

Rhopalolemma

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Santiago

Scaptotrigona

Scaura

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Schmiedeknechtia

Schwarziana

Schwarzula

Simanthedon

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Sinomelecta

Sphecodopsis

Spinopasites

Sundatrigona

Svastra

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Svastrides

Svastrina

Syntrichalonia

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Tapinotaspis

Tapinotaspoides

Tarsalia

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Teratognatha

Tetragona

[more]

Tetragonilla

Tetragonisca

Tetragonula

Tetralonia

[more]

Tetraloniella

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Tetralonioidella

Tetrapedia

Tetrapedia may refer to: [more]

Tetrigona

Thalestria

[more]

Thygater

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Thyreomelecta

Thyreus

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Toromelissa

Townsendiella

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Trichocerapis

Trichotrigona

Triepeolus

[more]

Trigona

Trigona is the largest genus of stingless bees, formerly including many more subgenera than the present assemblage; many of these former subgenera have been elevated to generic status. There are approximately 150 species presently included in the genus, in 11 subgenera. They differ from those groups now excluded in only minor structural details, primarily of the hind leg. [more]

Trigonisca

Trigonopedia

Triopasites

[more]

Ulugombakia

Xenoglossa

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Xeromelecta

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Xylocopa

Carpenter bees (the genus Xylocopa in the subfamily Xylocopinae) are large bees distributed worldwide. There are some 500 species of carpenter bee in 31 subgenera. Their name comes from the fact that nearly all species build their nests in burrows in dead wood, bamboo, or structural timbers (except those in the subgenus Proxylocopa, which nest in the ground). Members of the related tribe Ceratinini are sometimes referred to as "small carpenter bees". [more]

Zacosmia

[more]

More info about the Genus Zacosmia may be found here.

Sources

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Last Revised: August 24, 2012
2012/08/24 13:24:04